The Link: Sharingan and Diapers
by Nerva al'Thor
Summary: [COMPLETED] Sasuke frowned at the trail of blood on his floor. Heart pounding, he followed it. There was the door. He slid it open, and the world seemed to tumble into chaos. His brother was there, leaning on the wall, a baby in his arms.
1. Prologue: Stars

_Hi guys! I hope you like this sequel as much as you liked Snake and Fox!_

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**The Link **

**Prologue: Stars**

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The stars shone brightly overhead, displaying a milky glow that would have made even a person like Deidara or Kisame stop to admire them. But they had no time for admiring anything because the mission had failed. Failed right to their faces, as if it wasn't enough to their proper Akatsuki pride that their most powerful hit man since Orochimaru had been felled down...and possibly dead. The thought made Deidara's thoughts spin wildly in his blonde head. _He's not dead! He can't be dead!_ But the last they saw of him... _HE IS NOT DEAD!_

Kisame's rough voice sounded beside him. Was there a trace of pain? Deidara couldn't be sure. "We will come back for him." He said this not because they had to, but because it was going to happen. Deidara twisted his neck for a bit to see the way in which they had come from. Everything was coated in thick shadows that not even his practiced eyes seem able to penetrate.

"Tch, that kid's dratted parents..." Deidara snarled.

"We underestimated them badly, that's what!" Kisame snapped. "And now we've paid for that mistake!"

Deidara bit back his lower lip to prevent himself from arguing some more. They did pay the price and it was heavy. Too heavy for comfort, actually. _Hold on, Itachi! We'll come back for you! _ Deidara swore to the stars.

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The dratted brat was bawling very loudly. The noise was finally getting to Itachi's nerves, and it was doing nothing good to ease the white-hot pain that racked his whole being from the inside and ate him alive. The Uchiha forced his dry, parched lips open to release a scream that echoed his agony. The two sounds mixed, his dying scream and the baby's own tragic ode to its dead parents. Itachi never screamed if he could help it, but the pain...and everything else...

Under the wan starlight his red Sharingan eyes had a perfect view of the seal etched forever onto the kid's stomach. Itachi cursed under his breath as he tried to rise – but failed miserably and flopped helplessly beside the infant. The kid's mother had sealed them demon in successfully. It was a drastic measure of course – somehow the kid's parents would rather have their child bearing the monster's burden than let them have it. Itachi could never understand why people thought like that.

Itachi turned on his side and lay flat on his back. He could feel his blood flowing freely out of him, to be sucked up by the soil and used by the grass. The kid's father was unbelievably powerful. He had never seen a jutsu like that before, not in his whole life. It was painful to admit, but there you were. Tonight, his Mangekyo Sharingan met its match...and _lost_. Itachi thought vaguely that Orochimaru would have gone chasing for the kid instead and left his fool brother alone...if not for the fact that Orochimaru had already changed. Itachi thought he'd had ear problems the first time he heard the news from Deidara. But no, it was true. Orochimaru was currently mentor to the Kyuubi brat. It was impossible, and yet...

Gritting his teeth, the Uchiha pushed himself up. The baby was still bawling loudly as ever beside him. Gingerly, Itachi pushed himself to his feet and bent to pick up the noisy bundle from the ground. Surprisingly, the baby quieted down when its unusual purple eyes locked in with his Sharingan red. The baby made sucking sounds and extended its small, meaty hands to touch Itachi's bloodstained and muddy face.

Kisame and Deidara left already. They must have thought him dead. Itachi wedged the baby safely in the crook of his right arm before he started the long walk to god-knows-where. Pain erupted from the horrible wound on his side. His left shoulder throbbed as well, if everything his body suffered wasn't enough. It might have been sprained.

He needed to go somewhere. He could not afford the people of the village to find his body there. At least he wanted to die in a quiet place. Itachi trusted his feet would take him somewhere quiet.

It was very nearly dawn when he reached the house. He did not know where he was. His sense of direction crumbled into bits even before he entered this village, wherever and whatever this place was. He slid the doors open and went inside, neglecting to remove his shoes. _The hell with not stepping on the tatami floor now..._ Itachi gave an agonized moan as he reached yet another room...and yet another one...and another one...

And then he couldn't walk anymore. He slumped down against the wall, dark blood staining the floors. Itachi peered down at the baby in his arms blearily. The damn kid was already asleep with his thumb in his mouth. Itachi leant his head on the wall and closed his eyes.


	2. Bolt From the Blue

_Could you people suggest a nice name for the baby girl? XD_

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**The Link**

**Chapter I: Bolt from the Blue**

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The sun was quite high on the perfectly blue and cloudless sky that overlooked the border between the countries of Fire and Wind. The landscape was a barren, sandy wasteland with bare craggy cliffs and canyons, as empty as it could get unless you could find the time to see the seven specks walking side by side each other in the middle of it all. The said specks were all quite young Jounins (the other one was an Anbu) bearing the mark of the Hidden Leaf. The young men were from a birthday party celebrated in the Hidden Sand, and there had been much merry-making and drinking in the past night, so they all woke up late that morning and thus were only on their way back to their country.

"My head still hurts..." says one particularly lazy-looking Shikamaru. "I didn't know their sake was that strong..."

"Speak for yourself," said Neji. His kitty mask was positioned in such a way that it shielded his face from the sun's rays completely while giving him a comfortable view of his surroundings, not that he'd have a problem what with his Byakugan. "Naruto here drank through 12 bottles each and he still did not fall asleep!" The Hyuuga turned to the blonde fox. "What are you, Naruto?"

The said fox-boy only bared his perfect teeth in a cheeky grin and patted his belly.

"I wish I'd have a birthday party like that." Akimichi Chouji commented. "With lots and lots of food...I would have the biggest chocolate cake in the world, too. Gaara's cake must have been...what, twenty feet tall?"

Sasuke kicked at the dirt. "Gaara did not have the cake baked that big because he wanted to eat it all. He asked for his cake to be so big he can make sure all of his people will have a share of his birthday feast."

"I will have to double my training hours to burn all those excess sugar," Rock Lee put in. "I can't afford to have even a little amount of fat on me."

"Aren't we conscious on our figure, eh, Lee?" Kiba teased while Akamaru barked in agreement beside him.

They walked on in silence until a figure materialized in the middle heat haze. Naruto's blue eyes immediately widened, and the fox immediately broke into a dash toward the said figure. Sasuke could only shake his head. It had been three months since Naruto let Orochimaru escape from Konoha. He could not understand; he had been so angry that first thing next morning after that disastrous night he went to Naruto's house and beat the crap out of him. Naruto did not fight back, and when Sasuke had turned him into a bloody and bruised heap, he started to explain everything. It was all hard for Sasuke to accept. He and Naruto did not speak to each other for an entire month, but then, Sasuke was the first to actually apologize. Naruto cheerfully accepted the apology and everything was back to normal. Or as normal as things could get, anyway.

The hazy figure approached, and soon they recognized it was Orochimaru. Naruto eagerly bounded forward and gave his..._mentor_...a rib-cracking bearhug. Orochimaru hugged Naruto back and asked some questions that Naruto answered by nodding eagerly. Sasuke, Kiba, Chouji, Lee and Shikamaru all watched in awed silence. It was bizarre to see Naruto and Orochimaru like that. Only Neji watched unperturbed, even with a smile on his lips, but then, the Anbu did stay with them for seven months. And then Naruto turned and waved at them in farewell. Only Lee waved back just as energetically. Orochimaru gave the Jounins a respectful nod of acknowledgement before he laid a bandaged hand on Naruto's shoulder and they both vanished in a puff of smoke.

"I never can understand how Naruto manages all this." Shikamaru said as they continued walking toward the general direction of Konoha. "How do they train?"

"I've heard from Gai-sensei that they usually meet along the neutral borders," Lee answered. "But where they go afterward is still a mystery. We can be sure that Orochimaru doesn't take Naruto to the Hidden Sound."

"I wonder what jutsus Naruto learns." Chouji voiced his thought aloud.

Neji gave a light chuckle. "You can all be sure that they aren't illegal. Last I had a chat with Naruto, he told me that Orochimaru was teaching him Kuchiyose Rashoumon and Kokuangyou no Jutsu."

Sasuke did not speak. After everything he still felt a pang of fear every time Naruto left to train under Orochimaru. For Sasuke nothing could change what the Serpent was in his eyes. Orochimaru was a traitor, a murderer and an evil man. No matter what Naruto said, Sasuke still held firmly to his beliefs. The Uchiha kept his opinions to himself to prevent hurting his friend. Also, it was as if he could do anything to stop Naruto from going.

"Godaime-sama is aware of Naruto's training, isn't she?" Shikamaru inquired.

"Yes, she is aware of it." Neji replied. "Albeit grudgingly, of course."

They did not talk anymore for the remainder of the journey until they reached Konoha's gates and parted ways. Sasuke, unsure of what to do, decided to drop by a pizza parlor first and take out a box of pepperoni for his dinner later. He also spared a moment to talk to his Genin team and told them to meet him early the next day in their usual training grounds. He was going to show them how to do Chidori. Konohamaru was very excited and Sasuke had a hard time getting rid of him. The Uchiha then decided to proceed to his house and continue his much-needed sleep. They had slept very late in the Sand country – Kiba and Naruto's clamoring in the guest room only permitted them to finally close their eyes come three in the morning. Temari roused them all with her fan at nine in the morning. Six hours of sleep was certainly lacking for Sasuke since he himself emptied three bottles of sake. He needed to have a completely clear head before he could start teaching Chidori to his kids.

The Uchiha compound was unnervingly huge and silent. For ten years it had been the subject of mothers' wilder tales to frighten their children to sleep. Sasuke was completely used to living by himself in the compound – sometimes he'd invite the gang for some sleep over or a barbecue party when things got too boring. He liked his silence, Sasuke. However, when he entered the compound that morning, he was sure something was wrong. Hands clenching into fists, Sasuke looked hard at his surroundings as he made his way toward his mansion. It was too silent. The kind of silence he'd only encountered that fateful night when Itachi...

Sasuke quickened his steps, and in no time at all he was before his door. It was open. There were muddy footprints on the tatami floor he worked so hard to keep clean. _Who dares?_ Slowly, Sasuke went inside but immediately halted in his tracks. There was a trail of blood on his floor...no, wait...he looked back outside and cursed himself. _How come I missed this trail?_ His black eyes made way for Sharingan red as he lifted his gaze to the shadowy recesses of the house's inner chambers.

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They were going to the Wave that day, Orochimaru said. Naruto had been excited; it had been a very long time since he last saw the bridge that had been given his name. The fox asked about his mentor's hands, and Orochimaru said nothing had changed. It still hurt as badly as ever. Concern surfaced on the fox's face as he noticed that his mentor looked ill. When asked about it, Orochimaru only jokingly answered that he was tough and wouldn't be brought down by just a plain illness. It was only fatigue catching up on him. Naruto shouldn't worry about his health.

Kicking the ominous topic aside, Orochimaru asked if Naruto was practicing everyday. The blonde said yes immediately and started resuming the exercises for the Kokuangyou no Jutsu. The Serpent smiled. Naruto still had a lot to learn regarding making excuses for skipping his training.

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Sasuke frowned at the trail of blood on his floor. _Who in the name of Yondaime Hokage entered my house?_ Heart pounding, he followed it. There were the doors. The red trail spread around him, as if the intruder was swaying heavily on his feet as he moved around. Sasuke made himself a mental note that this was the last time in which he'd ever go out without sealing his house with precautionary jutsus. It could be anyone. It could be Itachi. So much better if it _was _his brother – Sasuke would kill him on the spot. For a few tense minutes Sasuke followed the blood, until he came to the final room in his house. The door also had blood on it. Swallowing, he slid it open, and the world seemed to tumble into chaos. His brother was there, leaning on the wall, a baby in his arms. Sasuke did not notice that the kunai on his hand dropped to the tatami floor. His mind instantly forgot all thoughts and plans of killing Itachi the moment his eyes registered the baby in his brother's arms.

_What...what in the name of...why is he...is he dead...is he?_ Sasuke took a tentative step forward. His brother did not move. The baby in his arms started to cry, a high-pitched wail that made Sasuke reach up with his hands and cover his ears. Then the younger Uchiha noticed the dried pool of blood by his brother's side. He crouched low and slowly extended his right hand to touch it, when in a flash he was gasping for breath, red eyes wide as a kunai made a dent in his neck.

Itachi was looking at a spot several inches short of Sasuke's head. The baby cried and cried, and a drop of sweat fell from Sasuke's chin. Itachi blinked several times. "Get me some milk for the baby, Sasuke." Itachi whispered, his voice grating.

Sasuke's Sharingan faded. "W-Why should I do that?" _Damn it, what's wrong with me? I can kill him NOW!_

Itachi frowned and glared at the wall. Sasuke frowned in confusion. _Why is he looking at the wall?_ "Because the baby is hungry, fool."

Sasuke couldn't move. The baby's cries got louder. And then it clicked inside his head.

His brother had become blind.

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_Please review! Thanks!_  



	3. Uncle Sasuke

_Heion will be the name for the baby! Thanks so much for the suggestions!_

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**The Link**

**Chapter II: Uncle Sasuke**

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The Great Naruto Bridge was a perfect place for training, especially in the early morning hours. The sea was slopping peacefully against the bridge's foundations, providing a sort of languid and soothing rhythmic sound. The breeze blowing inland was cold, like icy fingers reaching out from the sea to caress every thing that stood in their path. Sea birds squawked and soared around in circles overhead, a definite contrast against the sea's peaceful sighing.

There were currently two men standing in the middle of the Great Naruto Bridge. One could surmise they could just have appeared there from the air. Well, ninjas were known for disappearing and appearing at will anyway. The shorter one was blonde, wearing a black suit mixed with glaring orange, a Leaf head protector perched on his forehead. The young blonde stood in firm concentration, legs apart, eyes closed and hands trembling as he kept up a hand seal for whatever jutsu he was trying to master. In spite of the early morning coldness, drops of sweat bedewed the blonde's whiskered face.

His companion, a certain pale man with sleek black hair was leaning on the railing and one of the bridge's many supporting pillars. The pale man was wearing the traditional Jounin garb, with his hair tied up into a neat ponytail at the back of his head. Strangely, though, his head protector was not that of his own village, but of the Hidden Leaf. Currently the man was dozing, his chin drooping onto his chest and his bandaged arms folded one above the other. It was as if he'd been awake and watching his student practice, but he got bored of waiting for any results and thus found himself in a doze. He was even snoring lightly.

Naruto ground his teeth in frustration. He was never good in genjutsu. But as his sensei pointed out, Kokuangyou no Jutsu would be of immense use for him if he could master it. It blinded one's opponents effectively and gives the user the ninety percent of the battle. That and the fact that this jutsu was created by the Nidaime Hokage. A drop of sweat fell off Naruto's chin, and that was the last straw.

"AAAAARGGHHHH! THIS IS ANNOYING ME!"

His sudden shout shocked the sleep out of his mentor, who, suddenly lost his balance and started to teeter dangerously over the bridge's edge. Orochimaru gave a strangled yell and flailed his arms wildly, but a breeze blew, and this completely knocked off his precarious balance. There was a small splash as he fell into the chilling salty waters below.

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"You're blind." Sasuke suddenly blurted out as he squirmed uncomfortably under the kunai pointed to his vein.

Itachi's expression softened, but he did not lower the kunai. "Yes I am."

Sasuke was suddenly at a loss for words. He flicked his wrist and a new kunai slid into his hands. His head was screaming at him to go kill his brother _now_. It was all so easy. By admitting he was now blind, Itachi had lost his weapon. He had no Mangekyo Sharingan up his sleeve any longer. Sasuke could have the advantage. It would be so easy. The younger Uchiha's grip tightened around his kunai. _Kill him now, Sasuke! KILL HIM NOW!_

He made a sudden move, but Itachi surprisingly lowered the kunai. What he did next made Sasuke's lips go dry. Itachi lifted the baby and tried putting it to sleep.

"_Rock a bye baby, on the treetop..._

_When the wind blows, the cradle will rock_..."

Sasuke paled. _He can SING?_ He watched, dumbfounded, as Itachi made comforting sounds and pecked the baby's rosy cheeks with light kisses. The baby's crying did lessen, and soon it was crooning in Itachi's arms and waving its small hands. Sasuke felt that someone should bang his head with a frying pan.

"Sasuke, I told you to get me some milk." Itachi said in his usual empty voice.

The younger Uchiha blinked. "I...I don't have any milk." Or rather, Sasuke hated the taste of milk.

Itachi rolled his eyes. He was getting frustrated, and that was not good. "Then go _buy one_, fool." Tch, his brother made him talk so much it was grating on his nerves!

Unnerved, Sasuke soon found himself on his feet and fumbling for his purse. He took out a couple of bills and went outside to the nearest variety store he could find. _Why am I obeying Itachi?_ His thoughts shouted as he asked for some milk from the vendor, who was eyeing him curiously. _I should have killed him! What is wrong with me?_ Maybe some of his thoughts showed up in his face because the store owner fumbled for a baseball bat and kept a precautionary grip on it as he gave Sasuke a carton of milk and his change.

The younger Uchiha turned on his heels before remembering that they did not have any feeding bottle whatsoever. Swallowing an awfully hard lump in his throat, he turned back to the store owner, who still did not let go of his baseball bat. "Uh...excuse me, but...do you have an 8-onze feeding bottle? I'd like to buy one, please."

The store owner's calculating look gave way to that of a curious one. "You're the Uchiha boy, right?"

Sasuke nodded.

"Why are you buying a feeding bottle?"

Sasuke blinked, completely thrown off-guard. "Excuse me?"

The store owner gave a wry smile. "That's what I say to my daughter. She's not careful with boys, no she isn't. Aren't you the responsible guy then?"

Sasuke's face turned very red as he understood the point of the conversation. He angrily snatched the feeding bottle and stomped back to his house, steam gushing out of his ears. _The nerve! Did that man think I'm – I'm THAT kind of person? How DARE he!_ The baby was crying again, and Itachi was...uhh...trying to hush it?

"Come now, don't cry anymore, Uncle Sasuke will be here soon with your milk... sssh, come on baby, don't give me a hard time!" There was a definite edge to Itachi's voice as he said that. He must be toeing the very limits of his patience now. "Oi, oi, come on..._stop crying, for Christ's sakes!_"

Sasuke was halted in his tracks, his jaw dropping open. _UNCLE SASUKE? **UNCLE SASUKE!**_

"SASUKE, WHERE ARE YOU!" Itachi finally screamed.

Shocked, Sasuke jolted out of his reverie and dashed to the kitchen to fix the baby's milk. Now his heart was pounding with fear. Fear he hadn't felt since he'd been Genin. His brother actually screamed. No, no that was wrong – everything was horribly wrong! Itachi does **NOT** scream! He was **NOT** Uncle Sasuke! He wasn't...Itachi doesn't...

Hands trembling, Sasuke filled the bottle with warm water up to the 8-onze mark. He gingerly opened the packet of milk and started spooning the powder into the bottle. Meanwhile, Itachi screamed again.

"SASUKE, WHERE ARE YOU!"

Even Sasuke's ear drums were pounding now. His fingers got screwed up as the spoon slid from his hands and onto the floor, _tsking_ irritably he made to pick it up, but another scream from his blind brother made him think otherwise. He rammed the feeding bottle's cap and nipple back on and shook it vigorously as he walked back to the room where Itachi and the baby were.

Itachi looked...bad. Sasuke had never seen his brother's haggard face twisted into an agonized glower. In their entire lives, Itachi never frowned if he could help it. This day was just so wrong!

"Here!" Sasuke said shakily as he held out the milk-filled bottle.

Itachi snatched the bottle from his trembling hands and thrust the nipple rather harshly into the baby's mouth. But then, as if the feeding bottle was magic, the baby changed from a little monster to a complete angel. It made adorable sucking noises as it fed, and Sasuke gaped at the speed the milk was disappearing. Itachi's face was cold steel as he stared blankly into space. His jaw was set so firmly that Sasuke had half a mind to go run for his life again.

"No good, this is no good, fix some more!" Itachi cried as he threw the emptied bottle to Sasuke, who fumbled with it. "HURRY AND PUT YOUR LAZY ASS TO IT, I SAID!" Itachi roared as the baby started howling in his arms again.

For the next fifteen minutes Sasuke ran to the kitchen and back to the room and vice versa until the baby was satisfied. As he washed the feeding bottle, Sasuke threw a worried look at the carton of milk he'd bought. It was empty now. Good heavens, how were they supposed to take care of a baby with that horrendous appetite? His head exploded in pain. _No, no, everything is so wrong!_ What on earth did Itachi do to his child to make it hungry like that? More importantly, who was the mother? The mere thought of his older brother as a father sent chills running down Sasuke's spine. _Good lord, Itachi actually knows how to make babies!_

"Calm down, Sasuke!" the Jounin hissed to himself. "Calm down and try see the logic of things!"

He carefully put the feeding bottle upside down on a plate to dry. Burying his face in his hands, Sasuke tried to put one and one together to make two. Did Itachi perchance have a fight with his wife? That could explain why he looked so haggard and...no, no, a plain quarrel between husband and wife won't end up to Itachi staggering back here, bleeding. Or...or maybe the wife and the child got attacked...and...and Itachi tried to save them? Only, the mother died? Impossible, Itachi was not the type who cared about families. All of this thinking only made Sasuke's head ache some more so he gave it up. He rose from the chair and walked back to the room.

The baby was crawling on the tatami floor, naked. Sasuke knew then that it was his niece. But something else caught his eyes. There was a weird, twirling mark on the baby's creamy belly. Sasuke's thoughts immediately went to how sick his brother was, having his daughter tattooed at such an early age. Remembering his brother, Sasuke looked wildly around for Itachi. There was no way Itachi would leave him with his daughter!

A crash from the bathroom told Sasuke where his brother was. _Probably patching himself up..._

Blinking, Sasuke realized that the baby had now crawled to his feet and was looking up at him with startlingly purple eyes. Hesitating, Sasuke bent and picked the baby off the floor. The baby made sucking sounds and clapped its little hands.

"Ga...ga...coo..."

Sasuke wondered what sort of ninja clan had purple eyes. He racked his brains for anything but came up with nothing. He looked at his niece. "Will you also bear the Sharingan?" he asked the child softly.

The baby laughed and turned its attentions to Sasuke's head protector. Little pink fingers tried tracing the mark of the Leaf etched on metal. "Coo...coo..."

Sasuke nodded. "T-that's right...Konoha."

Itachi re-entered the room. He was wearing nothing except the bandages around his torso and his pants. He looked pained. Sasuke clutched his niece tightly.

"You're sick, Itachi." He spat.

The older Uchiha turned to the opposite direction, frowning in confusion.

"The girl's so young you already had her tattooed..." Sasuke went on. "What kind of psychotic maniac are you!"

But Itachi did not bother answering. He clutched his belly and winced. A spot of red bloomed on his side.

"Who is this girl's mother, Itachi?" Sasuke demanded just as the baby managed to pry off his head protector.

Itachi took a while answering. "I don't know."

This time, Sasuke did feel like somebody hit his head with a frying pan.

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_Please review! Thanks!_  



	4. Heion

_Thanks for the support, guys! And to those readers who're still confused as to how why Itachi is blinded, I suggest re-reading the prologue and keep up with the latest manga scanlations in Narutochuushin. Also, **NO**, Heion is **NOT** Itachi's daughter. Thanks!_

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**The Link**

**Chapter III: Heion**

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The Uchiha mansion had never been this crowded for Sasuke. He shifted uncomfortably underneath his blankets, very much aware that his brother Itachi and his daughter were just in the other room. Turning and tossing on his bed, Sasuke finally gave up all hopes of a peaceful sleep and rose to fumble for his slippers under his bed. He put the fluffy things on and walked out into the dark recesses of the house, heading to the general direction of Itachi's old bedroom.

Sasuke paused outside the sliding door, listening. Of course his brother sensed him standing outside, but Itachi did not say anything whatsoever. The older Uchiha was awake, because Sasuke could hear the baby cooing and laughing playfully at the sound of his hushed voice. Sasuke glowered at the door. What was he doing? Wasn't he supposed to kill his brother? He was up to scratch now, he was sure of that, even though the Mangekyo Sharingan was forever beyond his reach. Sasuke found the answer fairly quickly. He could not dare inflict the same fate he had to his niece, no, not ever. His hands clenched into fists. He would not let his niece suffer through her childhood parentless, just as he had. Itachi was her only family now, aside from him. Sasuke knew it would always be different if it was your own father that raised you. For that reason alone, he would lay down his kunais for now and let Itachi live.

"Can I enter?" he asked timidly.

There was no answer, but from Itachi, that usually meant a yes. Sasuke slid the door open and slipped into the room. He looked around. The bedroom was still the same neat, square space that he had grown used to. There were no posters along the walls, the closet stood silently near the only window, which was currently open to let the cool breeze inside. Sasuke had always been in this room when the clan had seen better days, but he had stopped being here when his family was ruthlessly murdered. This was the only time he ever set foot into this old haunt again.

Itachi was awake, sightless eyes staring blankly into the far wall across him as he held his daughter by the arm pits before him. The girl was clapping its hands and laughing at something Sasuke couldn't see. Hesitating, Sasuke walked further into the room and sat down at the edge of Itachi's bed. His niece gave an excited shriek and freed herself from her father's hands and crawled toward him.

"Caa...ooh...ca..." the girl crooned, pointing to his head protector.

Smiling, Sasuke took the baby and sat her down on his lap. "Ko...No...Ha."

The girl laughed again and shrieked. Itachi blindly turned his head to their direction. Sasuke met his eyes for a moment.

"How did you become blind?" he asked.

"It is one of the effects of the Mangekyo Sharingan." Itachi said levelly. But of course that was a lie; the baby's father had used a special eye jutsu on him when they fought – something like Byakugan – and the jutsu inevitably hastened his blinding, so here he was, completely plunged into the darkness.

Silence. Sasuke stared hard at his brother's careworn and blank face. _Effect of the Mangekyo Sharingan?_ "The Sharingan will not blind an Uchiha."

"I am not forcing you to believe me." Itachi said plainly.

Sasuke glared at his brother. "Son of a bitch..." he whispered.

Itachi shifted underneath his blankets, hands reaching blindly for the baby's bottle. "Tell me, Sasuke, is it true that Orochimaru and Naruto...?"

"The hell you care about them." Sasuke spat. _How did he know? Oh, wait, the Akatsuki..._

"It strikes me as a curiosity, this news of Orochimaru changing." Itachi went on. "And if I string other people's words together...Otogakure is certainly becoming...open."

Sasuke could not understand, so he kept silent. The baby had now turned her attentions to his left ear. He absent-mindedly tried to keep her fingers away; his ears had always been his ticklish spot. Itachi on the other hand, found the feeding bottle and rose to his feet gingerly. He looked so helpless, blind. He walked with his hands extended forward, touching the wall and the door. He went out of the room. Sasuke turned his attention to his niece.

"What about you?" he smiled. "You cute little girl, huh? Why are you staring at me like that? You, you, you!" he said as he ticked the baby, who gave a great shout of laughter.

There was a small crash from the kitchen, but Sasuke ignored it. _Let him suffer!_ He thought spitefully as he continued playing with his niece.

"Baa! You like being thrown like that, don't you? Don't you? Ha ha ha!"

He was throwing the baby some inches in the air and catching her again by the armpits. The baby liked it so much, though, that when Sasuke caught her for the fifth time, she could not stop herself from peeing down his front.

"Good grief!" Sasuke cried out. "Damn it, you ruined my shirt!" the warm, yellow liquid dripped from his shirt and onto the tatami floor. "Aww, damn...that's really gross...really, really gross..."

The baby only laughed at him.

* * *

Orochimaru stood calmly, his head swiveling this way and that as he surveyed Naruto's 'darkness' around him. The Sannin's eyes noted that the darkness was not stable – the shadows writhed and twisted, a sign that Naruto was having trouble maintaining the genjutsu. Sarutobi had once told his students that a Kokuangyou was well done if the darkness was firm and stable around the target. A writhing Kokuangyou was not good – it was a sign of poor concentration and stunted Chakra handling. A smile spread on Orochimaru's lips. Naruto was so much like Jiraiya. Jiraiya was the last to perfect the Kokuangyou back then, of course.

Bending low, Orochimaru removed one of his sandals and clutched it ready as he surveyed the writhing darkness around him. It would take an awfully long time before he could proceed teaching Kuchiyose Rashoumon to his foxy student. And then the Sannin suddenly pivoted on his heels and hurled his sandal full-force to his left. There was a loud **_CRACK_**, and the darkness vanished like a cloud of smoke blown away by a forceful breeze. Naruto was revealed sitting on the grass, clutching his nose, where Orochimaru's sandal slammed head-on.

"Whab was dat phor?" Naruto grunted, glaring at his mentor. "It burt!"

"That, Naruto, is the point of Kokuangyou no Jutsu." Orochimaru explained. "What made it easy to find you is that your darkness is unstable. Do you understand what I meant by creating 'a solid dome of darkness around your target'?"

Naruto only glowered back at him.

"You are not concentrating enough, and the way you handle your Chakra...I'm surprised you became Jounin at all." Orochimaru said as he put his sandal back on and walked away. "You are so much like Jiraiya, do you know that? Concentration and Chakra handling had always been his problem..."

"Wait for me! Wait!"

They headed back to the village. Orochimaru suddenly paused and halted a passing cart selling shakes. The Serpent bough two large paper cups of the cold refreshment and handed one to Naruto, who sniffed it suspiciously.

"Cola-flavored?" said the fox.

Orochimaru nodded. "We'll drink it all in one go. Can you do that? Or you can't?"

"Of course I can!" Naruto snorted.

"All right...on the count of three. One...two... three!"

There was a loud slurping sound as the two ninjas strived to finish off their shakes. Naruto felt numbing pain explode in his head, and he let go. "Ack! Brain freeze!" he winced. Orochimaru managed to finish his cup, and after discarding the emptied container, pinched his nose slightly.

"That wasn't so bad." He said, walking yet again.

"What was the point of that?" Naruto demanded as he twiddled his straw.

"Just to see how much endurance you have."

"What?"

"Weakling."

"Am not!"

"Weakling."

"Am not!"

"Weakling."

"AM NOT!"

* * *

Rima eyed the Uchiha boy suspiciously from behind the cashier's counter in the grocery where she was working part-time. The Uchiha boy had made strange rounds in the grocery before finally going to the baby care section. As Rima watched him, he was currently crouching down and comparing two different brands of diapers from one another. The Uchiha boy was also very red. Finally he rose, looking around for some help...and his eyes found her. The young Chuunin braced herself as he approached, clutching the diapers.

"Uh...c-could...could you tell me...which one...which one is..." he said lamely as he raised the packages in his hands. "I have no idea..." he blushed some more, as if the whole process of buying diapers was costing him every ounce of whatever pride he had.

Rima raised an eyebrow. "Technically...they are both diapers. You can buy either one of them; they work in the same way, if you ask me." Her father had always lectured her about her sharp tongue, but that was just how she was. And she stubbornly refused to change.

The Uchiha boy glared at her as if this was all her fault. And then he stared at the two different brands for so long Rima thought he must have taken root on the spot. And then he pushed the orange one toward her, and Rima started to punch the price.

"_I hate pink_." The Uchiha boy said. He tossed the other one into the basket by the counter. Rima raised an eyebrow at him as she shoved the diaper pack into a brown paper bag.

"That's 280 ryo for you." She said as she blew a bubble and popped it.

He fumbled in his pockets for a bit and gave her an exact change. He hurriedly took his purchase and went out of the grocery, looking wildly around as if he were being stalked by someone or something. Rima watched him cross the street and shook her head.

"What a freak..." she whispered as she went back to her romantic novel.

Upon reaching the second street from the grocery, Sasuke broke into a frantic dash and did not stop until he was well into the safety of the Uchiha compound. He threw a furtive look behind him, and was utterly relieved to find nobody except a cat foraging for whatever food there was to be found in the nearby trash pile. Muttering curses and death threats for Itachi, Sasuke made his way back to their house. The delicious smell of gyoza greeted his nose. Perplexed, Sasuke made his way to the kitchen.

His niece was lying on her belly on the dining table, naked. She was resolutely biting into an ancient-looking teether that would have not looked out of place in a museum. And then Sasuke recognized that the teether had been his. Itachi had his back facing him, and the older Uchiha was busy tasting the soup he was cooking. Itachi even had their mother's old apron on.

Sasuke deposited the diapers onto a chair and picked up his niece from the table. Her purple eyes sparkled at the sight of his familiar face, but whatever laughter she had was muffled by the yellowing teether in her mouth.

"Why are you leaving her around naked?" Sasuke demanded angrily. "She'll catch a cold!"

"Then dress her." Itachi murmured indifferently.

Glowering, Sasuke snatched up the girl and went to his bedroom. He deposited her carefully on his bed, where she shrieked and rolled onto her belly again before attacking the teether once more. Sasuke rummaged through his old, smelly boxes until he found her a white shirt that had been his when he'd been a child. He dressed her up – he had difficulty pulling away his teether from her, and he very nearly panicked when she started to cry – and went back to the kitchen. Itachi was already setting the table, but Sasuke groaned at the sight of shards of broken plates on the floor. He also noticed that his brother had countless cuts on his fingers that were still oozing out tiny droplets of blood.

Sitting his niece onto his lap, he took the bowl of soup Itachi offered him. At the sight of the contents of the supposed soup, Sasuke went blue. The soup itself was a suspicious green in color, and it had bits and pieces of unrecognizable vegetables. The tomato in it wasn't even sliced properly (there was a big, soggy tomato in his bowl)! And a whole, disgusting fish head was peeking up from the bowl Sasuke was clutching.

"Ugh, no...I'll pass up the soup." He said in disgust as he pushed the bowl from him.

Itachi gave him a platter of gyoza. Sasuke sighed in relief. Gyoza was the only thing Itachi could cook well. He was hopeless in all other kinds of dishes. Sasuke felt a hint of grim satisfaction as he noted that he could cook a variety of fifty dishes. Hah!

They ate in silence, silence that was only broken by the girl's occasional cries. And then Sasuke remembered something very important.

"Itachi, what is her name?" he suddenly asked. The baby looked up at him.

Itachi carefully put down his chopsticks. "...I...don't know."

Sasuke gaped at his brother. "Gods in heaven! You don't even know your daughter's name!" he said loudly, making the baby start in fear. "You are such a bastard, you foul, you -!"

Itachi only stared blankly into space. Sasuke thought the girl was his daughter? For some reason the whole absurd idea sent a rare spark of humor into his fevered mind. But he did not bother correcting his fool little Sasuke. Let the weakling think of whatever he wants.

"Then we give her a name." Itachi said passively.

Sasuke closed and opened his mouth like a confused goldfish. The baby was crying. He hushed her. "We'll call her Betty."

Itachi choked on the piece of gyoza he'd been nibbling on. "Excuse me? _Betty_?"

"Yeah!" Sasuke glowered at him. "What's wrong with that!"

"Your taste, that's what." Itachi said in horror. "Betty my ass..." he muttered. "No, we shall call her...uh...uh...ehm...Akatsuki."

"No way!" Sasuke objected. "Why not...uh...Hinata!" it was the first name that came to mind.

Itachi snorted in disgust. Sasuke glared at him.

"All right, we'll try again! Ryoko?"

"Shut up, Sasuke" Itachi said.

"I won't let you name her after your organization!" Sasuke declared, hugging his niece protectively. "I'd rather call her Betty!"

Itachi rose. "We'll call her...Heion."

Silence.

"What does that mean?" Sasuke inquired when his vocabulary finally failed him.

Itachi looked at him for a long time. "It means _peace_."

The baby laughed and touched Sasuke's cheek, as if saying _I like that name. Do call me that, please_.

"Fine by me." Sasuke said.

Itachi sat back down. "Good."

* * *

_Happy New Year! Please review! Thanks!_


	5. Barbecue

_Sorry if this update and the next ones after it will take time – my university has resumed and we're on the last three most difficult and hectic months. Thanks for the awesome support!_

* * *

**The Link**

**Chapter IV: Barbecue**

* * *

The purple-eyed Jounin named Koyuki surveyed the wreck that had been her brother's house. She stepped carefully over the burnt timber and foundations, running her gloved hands gently over each piece of charred furniture or window, whatever remnant it may be of her brother's family. Tears of anger and revenge flowed from her eyes, her purple eyes that currently had its pupils narrowed into slits.

"Hajime, Kurumi and Miyabi..." she whispered the names of the family that had once lived here. Her thoughts strayed to her niece, Miyabi. Was she alive? She was only six months old – far too young to be involved the in mess of their hardly noticeable village. Koyuki clenched her hands into fists. It could be that the Akatsuki had taken her niece. If that were so, she could never see her again. Earlier she had seen the barely recognizable body of his brother's wife, Kurumi. She had died Sealing the Houou into her daughter. The Jounin gritted her teeth. _Why, Kurumi? Why did you do it? Do you want your daughter to suffer being alone and detested all her life?_

"My lady," a voice said, and Koyuki turned to see one of her Hunters kneeling before her. "We found no traces of the attackers except this." He held up the wide-brimmed cap that had always been trademarked on Akatsuki members. Her purple eyes flashed as she slashed the cap neatly in two with one of her wakizashi.

"I have no need of hats, Nataku." She said coldly. "I need the whereabouts of my niece!"

The henchman hesitated. "My lady..."

"Miyabi is alive; don't tell me to give her up for dead!" Koyuki shouted. "Get out of my sight!"

The henchman vanished in a blur of movement. Koyuki bent low to pick up a burnt head protector from the ground. The insignia of Kirigakure was etched onto the bloodstained chromium plate. Her brother's blood. Koyuki's hands closed tight over the head protector. She _will_ find Miyabi. Even if it was the last thing she would ever do. She and her niece were the only remaining members of the Purple clan now.

_Hold on, sweet darling Miyabi. Auntie will find you! I promise!_

* * *

Itachi ran his right index finger gently over the baby's cheek. The girl was sleeping in his arms, smelling very good because of the bath Sasuke had given her. The corners of the older Uchiha's lips twitched. Sasuke had made such a riot in the bathroom. One moment they were quiet, the next Heion was crying her heart out while Sasuke was also screaming in panic beside her. Itachi had had to restore calm by himself. One of these days, Sasuke would end up killing the girl. Not if he could help it, though.

The baby stirred in Itachi's arms. He cradled her close as he sat out in the open near one of the Uchiha's abandoned private gardens. Her face was the last thing he had ever seen before blindness had claimed his eyes. Her small, doll-like face with its ever pouting pink lips and purple eyes. It did not help that her eyes reminded him of her father – the damn bastard who was first ever in history to defeat his Tsukuyomi. It was a pity that his name would be forgotten in the sands of time, though.

Itachi contemplated upon his orders in silence. The Akatsuki had ordered him, Kisame and Deidara to obtain the third most powerful tailed monster, the golden-tailed Houou, which had been currently spotted in the Hidden Mist. Unlike Gaara's Shukaku and Naruto's Kyuubi, the Houou was a rather passive beast. It would not attack unless severely provoked, and was generally playful with humans. The Hidden Mist's Purple Clan had recently gained the Houou's trust, and thus they were dispatched from the Akatsuki. But the girl's mother sealed the beast into her, and they had had no choice but to take her with them...until her father barred their way like a rock.

Itachi never thought he, Kisame and Deidara would be overpowered by a single man. The man had a bloodline limit; it could be easily spotted just by noticing their clan's peculiar eye color. It had to be one of the strongest bloodline limits around. It defeated his Mangekyo Sharingan and even hastened his blindness, so now here he was, quite useless without his eyesight.

Itachi shifted his weight to his left leg just as needles attacked his right one. The baby snuggled closer into his shirt. He could still regain his eyesight, though, but if that were to happen...he would no longer be able to use Sharingan forever. The Uchiha compressed his lips together. He would stay here, hidden in Konoha, until his eyesight returned. After that, leaving with the baby and incapacitating Sasuke would be easy as chicken feed. Or he could wait until Deidara and Kisame found him. It would be easier that way, and he would have no need to confront his weakling brother.

A sudden cry from the baby jerked Itachi out of his thoughts, and he slowly rose, ignoring the cramping of his right leg. He went back into the house. Where did Sasuke leave the baby's milk anyway...? He reached with his right hand and winced as a shattering sound echoed in the house. Itachi seriously hoped that _wasn't_ Heion's milk bottle.

* * *

Tsunade frowned suspiciously up at one Sarutobi Asuma. "What did you just say?"

Asuma shifted the cigarette he had been chewing. "Uchiha Sasuke came knocking at our door earlier this day and asked Kurenai about how we were taking care of our children. And strange questions they were too, Godaime-sama. He asked about how to change diapers, give a baby a bath...how to clean its ears and nose..."

"Why would he want to know those things?" said Tsunade, eyebrows rising.

Asuma shrugged. "I wish I knew, Godaime-sama."

Tsunade frowned thoughtfully. "Sasuke doesn't have a girlfriend, does he?"

"He'd dated Tenten for a couple of months, but nothing came of that, so I've known from Gai." Asuma replied. "And Kakashi told me that Sasuke hadn't courted or dated anyone else. He's been seeing Hinata a lot more frequent than usual, but Neji reported that their conversations were friendly."

The Hokage straightened in her swivel chair and took the folder Asuma delivered. "I know it's none of our business...but do tell Kurenai that if she might weasel out something interesting..."

"Of course, Godaime-sama." Asuma replied promptly. "Kurenai wishes me to remind you of our son's second birthday come this next month..."

"Good grief, I'm Eikichi's godmother, aren't I?" Tsunade exclaimed as she pulled out a planner from one of her drawers and put down the date.

"Godaime-sama most certainly is." Asuma smiled.

"I'll be there." Tsunade grinned back at him. "So then...allow me a three-day period to review this report you've turned in." Asuma bowed briefly. And then the door opened again to admit Sakura, who deposited a white envelope onto Tsunade's desk before going out again to resume her training with Shizune.

"A letter from Naruto." Asuma said.

Tsunade immediately grabbed the envelope and looked at it. Naruto's slightly messy scrawl read: _Kiri, Wave Country._ So he and Orochimaru were in the Hidden Mist? Tsunade tore open the envelope without effort, and out came spilling two photographs and a note paper. The first photograph was a colored shot of a spectacular view from one of the beaches of the Wave Country. The other was a shot of Naruto and Orochimaru as they made faces at the camera. Tsunade couldn't help but gave a half-crooked smile. She looked at the note.

_Doing well over here, nothing to worry. Close enough to master Kokuangyou no Jutsu. It's a bitch. Going to meet with perverted hermit next week. –Naruto_

"Kokuangyou? Nidaime-sama's technique?" Asuma repeated.

Tsunade nodded and folded up the note to insert it back into the envelope. She pulled open yet another drawer that was especially used for Naruto's letters only and tucked the note into it. The photographs Tsunade added to a scrapbook that Sakura and Shizune made for her.

"If Naruto can have the best mentor regarding that genjutsu, it's Orochimaru." She said. She shook her head. "Asuma, the education of the Rokudaime Hokage is unfolding right before our eyes."

* * *

"I'm home!" Sasuke announced as he entered the Uchiha mansion and removed his sandals before walking further inside the house. "Hey Itachi, where are you? Look at these things I've bought for Heion-chan..." True enough, Sasuke had two bulging bags of baby things with him. There were little white shirts, socks and bonnets and even some rattles, dolls and teethers. "Itachi!" he called again.

"Here in the kitchen!" came Itachi's...strained...voice.

Upon noting the stress in his brother's voice, Sasuke immediately dropped his shopping to the floor and ran to the kitchen. The room...was a mess. Plates and bowls lay as broken shards on the tatami floor, and flour was scattered all over the stove and sink. Itachi was sitting on the table, Heion happily cradled in his arms as he fed her. There was even a white streak of flour on Itachi's nose, and there was a toothpick sticking out of his hair. He looked ready to erupt. Sasuke did not mean to, but his right hand flew to his mouth in an attempt to stop an oncoming guffaw. His brother looked _ridiculous_.

"W-what happened to you?" Sasuke asked, failing miserably to keep the laughter out of his voice.

Itachi glared at Sasuke's shoulder. "I had trouble looking for the girl's milk, Sasuke."

Sasuke gave a snort of laughter. "Didn't I tell you that it was on the bar?"

Itachi glared at him even further. The older Uchiha did not like his mistakes being pointed out to him. "You should have left it here on the table." He hissed. "And don't you _dare_ laugh at me." He added, forestalling Sasuke's cackle.

But Sasuke couldn't help but laugh. He laughed so hard, in fact, that he had to sit down because his knees refused to support his weight. Itachi only glowered at the floor, a faint blush on his cheeks. Heion made a sound, and he removed the emptied milk bottle from her. He lifted her up and set her on his right shoulder so she could burp properly. Sasuke finally had a grip on himself and finally stopped laughing.

"How was your day?" Itachi asked timidly as he gently patted the baby's back.

Sasuke stared. Did his brother just ask how his day was? Since when did Itachi do that? "Oh, fine and sort of boring." He answered as he rose. "My turn on dinner, right?"

"Yes." Itachi replied as Heion burped loudly.

"Go clean your mess, Itachi. I'm not lifting a finger to do it for you." Sasuke said as he opened the refrigerator.

Itachi did not answer but rose and went to his bedroom. After a moment he came back with a broom and dustpan and started to clean. Sasuke watched his brother from the corners of his eyes. Itachi had never been this obedient, no, never. And he in turn did not speak calmly with him until now. Sasuke knew something strange had started in the house the moment his brother had returned with his daughter. Did perchance being a father was finally grating on him? Was he regretting what he did? _Highly unlikely_, Sasuke thought dismissively. _He won't change. Unless it was Naruto who was with him. We both hate each other and he knows it._

"Some people are at the door." Itachi said suddenly, turning his head to the direction of the living room. "_Girls_."

Sasuke dropped the wooden spatula he was holding, eyes wide. "_What?_ Go hide, quick!"

Itachi left the broom and dustpan on the floor and very quietly went to his room. Sasuke heard the sliding of the door. He did not remove his apron as he went up front the house to see who called. His heart was beating wildly in his chest. _Did they notice? But who could possibly -?_ And then he remembered his tactless moves in the past few days. _Damn fool, Sasuke! Of course SOMEBODY'S bound to notice you buying baby products!_ Gritting his teeth, he saw the shadows behind the door. He swallowed hard.

"Saaasuke-kuuuun!"

Sasuke very nearly turned to stone. _Ino and Sakura! Damn it, of all the people to visit why those two twittering chipmunks!_ He moved like a robot as he opened the door, and the smile on his face felt like it was someone else's. "Ino and Sakura! What a pleasant surprise, what can I do for you?"

The two Chuunins exchanged a sly look before giggling shrilly. Sasuke crossed his fingers inside his apron pocket. _Oh please, let them go away...let them go away...I'm begging you with all of my abilities as a ninja, PLEASE SEND THEM AWAY!_

"Aren't you even inviting us inside?" Sakura asked.

Sasuke would have loved to answer 'Hell no!' But that would only spark Ino's curiosity. Before he could answer he noticed the bulging bags of food both girls had. There were ten bottles of sake, even. Sasuke paled.

"What're those for?" he asked, nodding toward the food and sliding the door shut behind him.

"Mou," said Ino as she stepped up to him and twirled a finger on his chest. "You forgot that it's your turn to host barbecue party this week. Shikamaru and the others will arrive soon – they've gone to get some interesting video CDs."

"M-my turn to host barbecue?" Sasuke repeated, aghast. "But...but I thought..." Naruto had always said he'd been a lame liar. "I thought...it wasn't my turn until...uh...eh...next month?" he tried adding a half-crooked smile.

Sakura looked at him oddly. "What are you saying? It's your turn every third week, Sasuke-kun. We had barbecue last week at Neji's, right? Are you sure you're all right? You look pale."

"I'm...I'm fine." Sasuke said faintly. In truth he was screaming inside his own head. _NO! HEAVENS NO, WHY NOW? GOOD LORD, HELP ME!_ His lips and throat felt very dry. He would have a hard time sending these two away. They would wonder why, and it'd be a matter of time before somebody – maybe Neji – would come check his house. He could not have that. If they find out Itachi's back and even living with him again...it would be chaos. "Well...ah...let's go inside." He slid the door open and stepped back as the girls went in, laughing shrilly. And then he suddenly remembered Itachi leaving the feeding bottle and milk out in the open.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Sasuke screamed as he leapt inside and barred Ino's way to the kitchen. The blonde raised her eyebrows at him. "No, no, wait, you can't use the kitchen yet...I'm not finish cleaning up...!" Naruto's words repeated inside his head. _You've always been a lame liar, Sasuke._ He even thought he heard the dobe's annoying cackle.

"What happened?" Ino asked, tiptoeing as she hoped to see the kitchen. "Did you blow something up?"

"Just go away, please." He said, pointing to the living room. He didn't mean to be cold as he said that, but there was no other way. Ino looked at him, hurt. Then she silently went to join Sakura. The Uchiha let out a long breath of relief and started to clean in blinding speed. He carefully set the feeding bottle and milk into his apron pockets (lucky they were deep). He then tiptoed carefully to Itachi's door and slid the feeding bottle and milk inside.

And then there were shrieks of hilarity as the boys finally arrived. Sasuke never thought he'd be as nervous as this all of his life. Shikamaru brought the karaoke microphone with him while Chouji brought three large bags of wasabi-flavored potato chips. Neji had the barbecue. Surprisingly, Hinata was with him. Tenten was also there. Sasuke shut his eyes and silently promised that if he survived this night, he would give ten times as much offering to the temples.

"Hey, Sasuke, where's the grill?" Neji asked.

"Uhm...uh...in the kitchen." He said lamely, gesturing. Neji went into the kitchen and rummaged through it. And then the Anbu called, "HEY CHOUJI, DID YOU BUY CHARCOALS!"

"I did!" the Akimichi called back.

Shikamaru was taking out cans of beer from his bag. "Pity Naruto isn't here. Hey Sasuke, what's with the apron?" he asked, eyebrows rising.

"I was just about to cook dinner." Sasuke replied as he hurriedly removed his apron.

He shot a secret look toward his brother's door and bit his lower lip. He seriously hoped Itachi wouldn't mind having a _very_ late dinner and was up to keeping Heion as silent as she could be.

* * *

Orochimaru looked at the list Naruto wrote for him. The Serpent shook his head. Naruto could _finish_ all of this? The sun had just set in the Hidden Mist, and the Serpent went out to get things for dinner. Jiraiya had joined them earlier and volunteered to cook up a hotpot. Naruto got very excited and quickly wrote down a list of ingredients and whatnot. He even tried to insist coming to get the food, but Orochimaru said he liked to do this alone. Sometimes he just woke up like that. Also, it was not like the Shinobi of the Hidden Mist would quickly notice him. He was good at being unnoticeable when he chose.

Already the Serpent had the vegetables needed. Now it was time to go for the beef. He pocketed Naruto's list and walked silently down the street, careful to keep his gaze averted to the ground. He was just about to enter a grocery when sudden pain erupted inside his head, turning his vision into a wild kaleidoscope of colors.

"Ugh!"

He did not notice that his vegetables had fallen to the street. He reached up with his bandaged hands and clutched his head. It hurt so much it must be cleaving apart now. And then the Serpent fell to his knees. His vision was darkening, and...

There was a retching sound as he threw up his lunch. His vision was darkening. The pain was increasing by the second. Now he was on all fours on the street, breathing harshly.

"Oi, mister, are you all right? Hey!"

He tried to answer, but he just retched again. The world had disappeared entirely. He felt somebody's hands on his shoulders, trying to pull him up. But his legs didn't like to support his weight. The pain spread downward. Now he couldn't breathe. He gave a rattling gasp.

"Go find a medic, quick! This man looks like he's dying!"

"What happened?"

"Go get a medic!"

"Is that blood?"

_This man looks like he's dying...dying, am I?_ A feeble thought sparked in his head. _I'm keeping my promise to my student, I'm not dying..._

Orochimaru fell forward into the arms of the Chuunin who had tried pulling him up. He had lost consciousness.

* * *

It was one in the morning when the gang finally went away and merciful silence resettled in the Uchiha compound. Many times during the night, Shikamaru and Hinata claimed they had heard a weird crying sound from somewhere and wanted to see what it was. Chouji said it was just the sake, and Sasuke built on this theory. He invented all sorts of lies from stray cats in the other empty houses to wandering ducks who liked to terrorize the neighborhood. Sasuke was very thankful that Kiba didn't manage to get off that night and join them. It would have been bigger trouble what with the dog boy's amazing sense of smell.

Now Sasuke had a tray of fish, rice and soup for his brother. He slid Itachi's door open and went inside. Heion was sleeping peacefully on the bed beside Itachi. Itachi was also fast asleep. Sasuke deposited the meal on his brother's study table and proceeded to poke him awake.

"Itachi...hey Itachi..."

"Hnh...w-what? Kisame?"

Sasuke frowned under the dim lamplight. "I'm not Kisame. Get up. I have your dinner."

Itachi sat up and rubbed his eyes before carefully lifting himself off the bed so as not to wake Heion. He went to his study table and ate hungrily. He even asked for three more bowls of rice.

"I'm sorry." Sasuke said. "It was unexpected...troublesome fools..."

Itachi waved his chopsticks to say it was okay. He tackled the glass of water and emptied it in one gulp. "That's fine...thank you for the food, Sasuke."

Sasuke picked up the tray and left his brother to continue his sleep. In the kitchen, he realized that that was the first time he ever apologized to his brother, and that that was the first time Itachi said thank you to him. A disbelieving smile spread on Sasuke's lips as he turned on the faucet.

* * *

_Please review! Thanks!_


	6. A New Acquaintance

_Thanks for the support, guys!_

* * *

**The Link**

**Chapter V: A New Acquaintance**

* * *

"Koyuki-sama! Koyuki-sama!"

The purple-eyed Jounin looked up from the book of herbs she was reading, her perfect eyebrows furrowed together in a questioning frown. A green-haired Chuunin, one who was under her in a supplementary Healing class, came to a halt before her, clutching her chest and panting like there was no tomorrow. Koyuki shut her book and took a step forward toward the girl.

"What is the matter, Aya?"

"You are needed in the hospital, Koyuki-sama." The girl said in a wondering voice. "One of the Legendary Sannin..."

Koyuki's purple eyes widened. "One of the Legendary Three? What happened?"

The Jounin broke into a brisk walk with the Chuunin trying to keep up beside her. "What were you saying about one of the Sannin, Aya?"

The girl nodded hurriedly. "The Snake Sannin Orochimaru was brought into the emergency room just now, Koyuki-sama. The standby medics have done the proper preliminary examinations, and they've confirmed he's been suffering from internal bleeding."

"Internal bleeding?" Koyuki repeated. "From a battle?" she had half a mind to ask Aya what the hell was Orochimaru doing in their village, but she doubted the girl knew. So she kept her mouth shut and decided to keep the question for later.

Aya shook her head, green curls bouncing on her shoulders. "He had been walking down the street with a bag of vegetables, Koyuki-sama. The Chuunins who brought him in said he had been about to go into a grocery to buy something when he just lost his balance and started retching in the street. He lost consciousness three minutes later, and they rushed him to the hospital."

_Internal bleeding but not from a battle? I can diagnose him for some illnesses but there is possibility of this being a side-effect of a jutsu or a kind of poison._ Koyuki thought hard. They now rounded a corner and Kirigakure's hospital loomed above them. Lights filtered out from the many windows of the six-floor building.

"Has Orochimaru regained consciousness, Aya?"

"No, not yet ma'am."

"Has the Mizukage been informed?"

"Not yet, as well."

"Keep it that way for a while."

The Chuunin very nearly tripped on a rock. "Koyuki-sama?"

"Keep it quiet for a while, Aya." Koyuki repeated as they entered the hospital vicinity. "If you can talk with the Chuunins who brought Orochimaru in, tell them to hold their tongues as well. I shall take care of the standby medics who attended to him. Which emergency room?"

"Room eight, ma'am!"

Koyuki turned into the first corridor in the hospital and walked briskly down the brightly-lit halls, stripping off her gloves in the process. She came upon a door and swung it open carelessly with a fist, and the sound of a bustling emergency room reached her ears. She turned to her left and soon enough, one of the standby medics ran up to her.

"He's growing worse, Koyuki-sama, we can't stop the internal bleeding..."

"Did you even find out what was the cause?"

The medic hesitated. "W-we couldn't be sure what it was, ma'am. We ruled out all others and that left us with two possible answers. It's either because of a jutsu he had been long using and suddenly released – or a kind of poison that is yet to be identified."

"Has Orochimaru regained consciousness?"

"No, ma'am, but he has been in a fever that's constantly getting higher."

"I see. Bring me ten buckets of ice water, and be quick about it!"

"Hai!"

As the medic turned on his heels to run in the opposite direction, Koyuki came upon emergency room eight and threw back the curtains that screened Orochimaru and the attending medics from view. Koyuki's purple eyes ran swiftly over the scene. Five medics were fussing over the still unconscious Orochimaru on the bed. Beads of sweat bedewed and trickled down the Sannin's temples, slicking locks of his sleek black hair. Even his breathing was harsh. Koyuki's trained ears could hear his heart working very hard to get blood around his body. If this kept up, he would die.

"What of the bleeding?" Koyuki demanded as she rolled her sleeves ready and approached the Sannin.

"We brought it to a trickle inside him, my lady, but it still doesn't want to stop."

"Which area?"

"Left torso, ma'am."

_The side? The liver or the pancreas, perhaps?_ Koyuki thought hard as the healing light of green Chakra spread around her hands. She was no Tsunade, but she was Kirigakure's first and best medical ninja. It was good that the other medics had already taken care of Orochimaru's clothes. Koyuki quickly placed her hands above the said afflicted area and her eyes saw through skin and muscle to view the bleeding in the Sannin's body. His other organs seemed fine. She could not see how he possibly just bled like that with no reason at all. Focusing her Chakra, Koyuki sought to seal the wound. It fought back, as if it did not want to be closed, but in the end she won. The bleeding came to a stop just as the medic she ordered earlier arrived with the buckets of ice water.

"Misao, Hikaru and Tama, get a tub, quick. Kira and Amei, be ready to help me lift him into the tub when it arrives and pour the ice water quickly, understand?"

"Yes, ma'am!"

Koyuki turned on her heels. "Get me a dextrose set, quick! He's dehydrating!"

"Hai!"

A sudden moan made Koyuki turn her head so fast her neck creaked dangerously on her shoulders. The Sannin Orochimaru was awake, eyeing them all with slight confusion and surprise.

"Where am I?" he asked. Koyuki saw one of his bandaged hands clench into a fist.

"You're in Kirigakure Medical Center, Orochimaru." Koyuki replied, bending over him to peer into his golden eyes. They seemed clear, unaffected by his fever. But how was that possible?

The golden eyes widened briefly. Orochimaru tried turning his head. "Where is my shopping?"

Koyuki frowned. "It is not the time to worry about vegetables, Orochimaru."

The Serpent sat up so suddenly that Koyuki jumped back, one hand flying quickly to one of the wakizashi at either side of her shapely hips. But the Serpent did not attack. He eyed them all coolly.

"I believe I am going to be late for dinner, and thus have to go back to my companions." He said, readying himself to rise from the bed. Koyuki gave him a push that made him grunt and bounce back into his pillows.

"You are not going anywhere until your fever lowers, Serpent." The medic said sternly.

"Fever?" Orochimaru frowned at her as if she were mad. Then one of his bandaged hands touched his forehead. "How under Manda's venomous fangs did I get a fever?" he demanded.

"Don't we all like to know?" Koyuki replied just as the tub arrived. The buckets of ice water were quickly emptied into it, and as Koyuki and her medics crowded around him, Orochimaru swung a kunai into his hands and pointed it toward them. Nobody moved.

"As I said, I am going to be late for dinner, and as such, have to get back to my companions." He repeated as he rose, still keeping the kunai at Koyuki's neck. "Oh, don't worry; I am not going to attack you or your village unless you all give me a reason to. My clothes?"

Still nobody moved. One of the medics licked his lips anxiously and shifted – Orochimaru's golden gaze rested upon him.

"Don't make me commit unnecessary murders, boy!" The Serpent snapped. "Put that syringe down or _I will make you_."

"Do as he says, Hikaru." Koyuki instructed sharply. The young medic looked like he'd been slapped, and did as he was told albeit shakily.

"My clothes. Please." Orochimaru said. A curly-haired medic gave him a spare shirt. For a moment the Serpent frowned at the white shirt. "It'll do." He lowered the kunai and wore the shirt quickly. Nobody had moved still, and he smiled. These medics knew he wasn't called Sannin for nothing. He looked around. "My vegetables?"

The medic called Hikaru gave him a paper bag. Orochimaru snatched it and the kunai vanished up his sleeve. "I would like to thank you all for helping me out – I assure you that I am as all right as I am going to get." He walked toward the nearest window, lifted it open and fled in a blur of movement.

Koyuki sighed as she felt the immobilizing jutsu leave her body. "Do not inform the Mizukage of what hastaken place here. I will take care of it." Unsheathing the two short swords at her hips, she followed Orochimaru out of the window.

* * *

Naruto was getting worried. It had been two hours since Orochimaru went to get things for dinner, and to be late for this long was obviously getting on the fox's nerves. As of the moment Naruto was pacing before the door with his arms folded across his chest. Jiraiya would have loved to say that Orochimaru was over fifty years old and therefore very capable of taking care of himself, but the frog hermit knew Naruto could get really scary if pissed off. He had to do this carefully.

"Naruto, you wouldn't help a single bit if you worry your ass out like that." Jiraiya said easily.

"There's something wrong with him." Naruto said sharply. At another place and time Jiraiya would have knocked him flat with a fist for disrespect to his elders. "I know it, but he doesn't tell me. I've noticed it since we met from Gaara's, you know, he's been looking so frail and doesn't eat much. Heck, he wouldn't even eat if I didn't tell him to. There's something wrong with him, and he's not telling me."

Jiraiya did not speak. True, Orochimaru looked kind of..._sick_. But he moved normally; it might have been fatigue or so – Jiraiya knew days like that himself, a time when you simply don't want to rise up from bed and do something. It could be an effect of old age, but he could not be sure. Of all of his mentors, Naruto was particularly protective of Orochimaru. Jiraiya could not see the fox caring for him like that...well maybe Naruto would for Kakashi, but still...

The door slid open and Orochimaru entered. Jiraiya's eyebrows rose. Orochimaru was _not_ wearing a white shirt before he left their apartment. Naruto, on the other hand, planted his fists on his hips.

"You're late!" the fox said accusingly.

Orochimaru did not bother answering and brushed the boy aside. He gave the hotpot things to Jiraiya. "Had a trouble in the streets, but nothing major." The Serpent said. Jiraiya eyed him for a moment, determined to detect a hint of a lie. But there was none. The frog summoner marched to the adjoining kitchen.

"What took you so long?" Naruto demanded. "I was so hungry I could have eaten a live frog!"

Orochimaru only eyed him askance. Sometimes the fox behaved as if he were the Serpent's mother. Orochimaru was just about to answer when a brisk knock sounded on the door. For a split second he and Naruto looked at the door, confused, but the Serpent got there first. He slid open a crack and peered out to see who called.

It was the purple-eyed medic. Orochimaru hastily banged the door shut.

"Who is it?" Naruto inquired.

Orochimaru did not bother replying. He slipped out, careful to keep the door closed behind him as he came to stand before Koyuki. She looked up at him beadily, a medic's stare. She was diagnosing him on the spot. Orochimaru bit back a furious diatribe. She was certainly a hell lot more annoying than Kabuto.

"What do you want?" he demanded quietly.

"You shouldn't have left, Orochimaru." Koyuki said coolly as she tentatively reached out a hand to touch the Serpent's forehead, but Orochimaru knocked her hand aside harshly. "You know you're sick – no, _you're dying_. You could live longer if only you would not act like a proud peacock and let me prescribe some medicine for you."

"I'm not dying." Orochimaru hissed. He glared at the woman; a glare that was enough to send Kabuto peeing down his pants, but she just stared blankly back at him. For that alone she was worthy of his admiration. Nobody could stand up to his death glare like that. Except perhaps certain people named Sarutobi, Jiraiya, Tsunade and Naruto. "And I am most certainly not sick. Why don't you just go away and mind your own business?"

"You know, you're an interesting case." Koyuki said, ignoring him. "Your body is deteriorating from the inside. I was barely able to stop that internal bleeding from killing you off, you know?"

Anger crackled beneath the thinning layer of patience. "I will not say this to you again. _Go away_."

From the inside, Naruto's voice sounded. "Orochimaru-sensei, what's happening? Are you all right?"

There was a thud as Naruto tried to open the door, but Orochimaru held it shut. He licked his lips anxiously as he eyed Koyuki. "Fine, let's have a deal. Let's pretend that...I've invited you over for dinner. We go inside, you eat with us, and during that time you can look at me however way you want. And then you will leave me your stupid prescription and never show your face to me again. And before I forget, _not a word to the boy and to the other Sannin_, do you understand me?"

"The other Sannin?" Koyuki asked excitedly. "Who? Tsunade?"

Orochimaru grunted in annoyance and slid the door open to reveal a gaping Naruto behind him. Naruto's blue eyes immediately rested on Koyuki's purple ones.

"Who are you?" the fox demanded rather rudely.

"Kirishima Koyuki!" the medic said brightly as she bent over Naruto and kissed him on both cheeks. "I'm here to have dinner with you!"

Naruto gaped at Orochimaru in confusion, but the Serpent was already inside the apartment, setting the table. Jiraiya's white head peeked from the kitchen, and his eyes widened at the sight of the beautiful Jounin.

"Oho! Is this what you meant by your _little trouble_ in the streets, Orochimaru?" Jiraiya said slyly. "I thought you had eyes for Tsu -!"

"Shut up, Jiraiya!" Orochimaru hissed.

The perverted hermit did as he was told, but did not fail to look at Koyuki's hips and chest before going back to his cooking. Naruto, still confused, led Koyuki into their apartment and gestured her to the couch.

"Nice place you have here!" she said cheerfully, but the men did not answer.

There was an awkward silence in the house. Naruto was busy thinking who on earth their visitor was. Jiraiya on the other hand was busy mixing up perverted thoughts and shrewd calculations in his brain. Koyuki appeared outwardly cheerful, when in truth she was awed by the fact that she managed to see two of the Legendary Three in a single day and that she was busy diagnosing Orochimaru from her place on the couch. Orochimaru was cursing everything inside his own head as he threw furtive looks toward the meddlesome woman.

Soon dinner was served, and the four sat around the table in strained silence. Jiraiya and Naruto were busy gaping at Koyuki, while Koyuki was busy staring at Orochimaru and Orochimaru was busy cursing the medic in his head.

"What's your name, sweetie?" Jiraiya asked, flashing one of his annoying smirks.

"Hai, Kirishima Koyuki desu." The medic replied cheerfully.

"How did you and Orochimaru-sensei meet?" Naruto piped up.

"I picked her up." Orochimaru replied sharply. "Got a problem with that?" he glared at Naruto.

Jiraiya choked on his tea. _Orochi-kun, you've always been a poor liar, did you know that? What are you hiding from us?_ He cast another furtive look toward their mysterious visitor. She had short swords on either side of her hips, but Jiraiya knew a medic when he saw one. _A sword-wielding medic? Interesting..._

Naruto was soon at a loss for words, and dinner was over in a matter of minutes. As Jiraiya and Naruto rose to take care of the dishes, Orochimaru quickly ushered Koyuki to the door. She gave him a small packet.

"Thrice a day, don't forget that, before each meal." She said, her purple eyes glinting. "Or you will die a _very_ painful death." That was all and she walked away.

Orochimaru glared at her retreating form before going back into the house and throwing the packet of medicine into the trash can.

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_Please review! Thanks!_


	7. Stinky Diapers and Fires

_I am trying as hard as I could to keep the Uchiha brothers IC in this story. However, I assume that the readers can have a gist of how hard that task is, given the primary genre of this fiction. Believe me, this isn't as humorous as the one I really have in mind. If I'd have written it down, you'd have refused to read it at all._

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**The Link:**

**Chapter VI: Stinky Diapers and Fires**

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Sasuke stepped back with great satisfaction from his work, black eyes glittering. Heion was squealing in delight as she lay on the rubberized mat on the kitchen table, sucking on her thumb and then waving it gaily in front of Sasuke's face. There, sitting down her middle, was the perfectly-put diaper.

"It's as easy as what I have told you." Sasuke said, turning to Itachi, who stood silently behind him, blank eyes staring at Heion's head. "You just feel around with the adhesive tapes – don't pull them too hard or they will tear off completely – make sure the diaper is well aligned around her middle. I'm sure you can feel it, right?"

Itachi nodded silently. The whole affair of changing diapers and giving baths to the baby _while he was blind_ seemed wholly impossible. But he had no choice. Sasuke was leaving today – his younger brother would be gone for two weeks at most, since the Chuunin exams were at hand. Sasuke was a Jounin mentor, of course – he had his own team to train by the way, and he was an examiner in the second part of the exams – in the good old Forest of Death.

Sensing Sasuke move, Itachi turned slowly on his slippers, keeping his blind vision to where he hoped his brother was standing. Sasuke was speaking again.

"I've put the milk and water here on the counter; you'd have no problem finding them. Also, I've arranged for her bath in the old bathroom mother and father used to have all to themselves." Sasuke went on. "I've also prepared dishes for you; you just have to jam them in the microwave when you're feeling hungry and set them to five. Don't worry, our microwave is still that silly thing as before – you can sense the numerals on the dials for the timer."

There was another nod from Itachi. The older Uchiha bit his lower lip in frustration. There were lots of instructions; he hated thinking about them all because they made his head throb painfully. If only he didn't lose his eyesight – well, if he did not go blind, he wouldn't be here at all. Apart from that, the nasty wound on his side had reopened last night, and he was hard put trying to stop the bleeding. Sasuke was not doing anything about it either – Itachi doubted if his brother would raise a finger to help even if he were on his deathbed.

"So, then, you understand it all?" Sasuke asked. "Heion's vitamins are also in the refrigerator – they're on the topmost shelf – just one after her breakfast."

"I think I do." Itachi murmured as he held out his arms ready for his 'daughter'. Soon enough he smelled her familiar scent of baby soap, and then her gentle weight crushed into his arms. He held her securely from below and in front, clutching her close to his chest. He felt her warm drool slick his left arm. However her sudden weight sent a sharp pang of pain down his side, and he had to grit his teeth to prevent himself from crying out. Something warm spread in the same spot, and Itachi knew he was bleeding yet again.

"Right." said Sasuke's voice. There was a crisp hint of doubt and worry there. "So...so I'm leaving now. Take care of her, Itachi. And keep the house intact until I come back."

Itachi felt Sasuke's vest brush his arms as his brother bent to kiss Heion on both cheeks. And then he sensed Sasuke's footsteps fading...until it disappeared entirely. Heion made little sucking sounds, and Itachi gave a start as he felt her smooth gums on his bare skin. She was trying to bite him. Smiling slightly, Itachi kissed her behind the head (and that was an excellent moment to take in her lovely scent) and took her to their favorite corner near the wilted gardens.

"So," Itachi whispered as Heion shrieked joyfully in his arms. "It's just you and me, Heion. Just you and me."

He wondered how on earth he was supposed to keep the house 'intact' as what Sasuke had instructed.

* * *

Sasuke had his head bowed in worry as he made his way toward the bridge where Team 7 had met countless times in the not-so-distant past. Now Konohamaru Corps, otherwise known as Team 1, met at the bridge nowadays. When Sasuke arrived at the said bridge, nobody was there. The raven-haired Jounin leaned on the railings, for a moment breathing in the morning breeze as he waited for his students to arrive.

Other nin started to show up. Shikamaru hailed Sasuke as he and his Team 3 passed by. After fifteen minutes he was followed by Hyuuga Hinata and her Team 5. Sasuke smiled at them all and waved at them jovially. That was when Konohamaru, Moegi and Raito arrived. Konohamaru and his companions looked really excited – Moegi was even bouncing on her heels.

"Sasuke-sensei, ohayo!" Konohamaru greeted. "We're all set for the training and the exams!"

"Yes, we are! I'm so excited!" Moegi piped up while Raito only grinned.

Sasuke smiled in spite of himself. "It's all right to feel the excitement of the Chuunin exams, but do not forget that you should not take all the stages lightly. Fight and do the tasks as if you were fighting for your own lives." He instructed seriously. "Do not forget what I have taught you."

"Yes, sir!" Konohamaru, Moegi and Raito answered altogether.

"All right, follow me!"

As they walked away from the bridge, Sasuke cast a final look toward the general direction of the Uchiha compound. _Hold on, Heion and Itachi!_

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At the same time, a certain couple consisting of a perverted hermit and a loudmouthed fox-boy was making their way from the gates of Konoha. Jiraiya sighed for the nth time as he cast a sidelong glance at Naruto, whose jaw was set so firmly he could have chewed rocks to bits. The fox had been severely disappointed when Orochimaru had called off their training and sent him home for the Chuunin exams. Naruto had been emphatic when he tried to argue with the Serpent. He loudly protested that he was not an examiner and he did not have his own team to guide, so what was the point of cutting off their training just when he was finally getting the real gist of the Kokuangyou no Jutsu? But Orochimaru was adamant in his decision, saying that Naruto needed to be in Konoha while such an event was taking place. Naruto would have clung to Orochimaru's leg all the way back to the Hidden Sound if not for Jiraiya bodily dragging him back to their village.

"I can't see his _point_," Naruto grunted for the millionth time. "I mean, you said that he did not waste his time watching the exams since your team took it. But here he is, telling me off to watch the proceedings! How dare he! I'm already a Jounin – what the hell do I care with this Chuunin exam anyway!" The fox kicked at a rock and sent it some ten meters away from their path.

"Orochimaru wanted you to re-learn something." Jiraiya replied sagely. "Something that you have obviously forgotten."

Naruto glared at him. "Don't you get started on me, perverted hermit!"

They rounded a corner and came face to face with Sasuke and his team. Sasuke's eyebrows rose in surprise at seeing the blonde back, while Konohamaru eagerly bounded forward.

"Naruto-niichan!" Konohamaru yelled. "Guess what! The Chuunin exams are here! I've already mastered Chidori, and I'm sure I'll blast my way through the exams with flying colors!"

"_Bug off, lamer_!" Naruto snapped as he rudely brushed Konohamaru aside as if he were an insect and stomped off toward Ichiraku with steam gushing out of his ears. Konohamaru looked hurt, and Moegi gave him an assuring pat on the shoulders. Meanwhile, Sasuke turned to Jiraiya, question in his eyes. The white-haired Sannin sighed yet again.

"Orochimaru called off their training and sent him home to watch the Chuunin exams." Jiraiya said plainly, with a shrug. "I'm sure you can guess what happened next."

Sasuke stared after Naruto's shrinking form. He had a hand on Konohamaru's shoulder. "He's just in a bad mood, that's all."

"I can see I'm keeping you." Jiraiya smiled at Sasuke before turning to his Genins. "Good luck with the exams, I am sure you'll do well. Why not? You have an Uchiha for a teacher!" He said with a wink before waving jovially and walking away.

Konohamaru and his teammates grinned cheekily at each other while Sasuke shook his head.

"All right, quit playing around – we have three days of training to do."

* * *

The first two days since Sasuke's departure was quite peaceful, in Itachi's standards. He had no trouble moving around the house while Heion was either sleeping on his bed or otherwise crawling in the now spacious living room. The baby proved to be agreeable most of the time, Itachi learned, except when he sometimes forgot it was due to her milk, or when he was giving her a bath (this was exceedingly hard, and Itachi could not fathom how to give the child a bath without getting one himself) or when she..._pooped_.

Itachi could not understand why Heion was suddenly bawling loudly when a moment ago she was as peaceful as a flower. He tried everything he could think of – he sat her on his knees, set her on his shoulders as he ran around the house like a complete fool, unearthed all of Sasuke's toys so she could play with it and even dressed up in a moth-eaten weasel costume he found from one of their father's extremely old and smelly chests. But only Heion cried and cried, refusing to stop and Itachi's eardrums threatened to burst.

"What's wrong, Heion?" Itachi asked in great distress as he lifted her up from the tatami floor and cradled her close. He was still wearing the ridiculous weasel costume as he did so, and a small corner in his mind was extremely relieved that Sasuke was not here – or hell would follow. "Tell Daddy what is wrong...ssh, come now, and stop crying...stop crying, _please_!"

But the girl's shrieks only got shriller, and Itachi felt the warmth of her tears dampen his shoulder. That was when his nose caught the otherwise ugly stink. Itachi froze, Heion still crying her heart out on his shoulder. He sniffed the air tentatively – and he wrinkled his nose. And then he turned his sightless eyes toward Heion.

"Oh no...not _that_!"

For a moment Itachi stood there, weasel costume and all, biting his lower lip as he patted Heion on the back. He had hoped he would not have to change her diapers for this reason. But of course that was impossible, what with Heion's seemingly monstrous appetite. For some wild moments Itachi thought it was the Houou sealed into her that gorged up on all of those baby foods and milk.

Cursing long and soundly inside his head, Itachi placed Heion down on his bed and hurried to fetch a diaper, some cotton balls, a bowl of water and the rubberized mat that Sasuke had often used as he changed her.

"Shh, it's all right, Daddy Itachi's here to change your diapers..." he muttered.

It was hard enough given that Itachi was extremely ignorant in these matters, but given the fact that he was _blind_ made things ten times more difficult. He fumbled around most of the time, and the unbelievably horrible stink made him cough several times. Good heavens, did baby poop really smell so _bad_? He cursed loudly as he knocked over the bowl of water when it was all nearly over, causing Heion to start up in fright and cry all over again. Itachi wanted to die.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to frighten you!" he cried as he picked her up and tried to soothe her down. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I won't do it again! _Oh for Uchiha's sake, stop crying!_"

Heion bawled for another ten minutes before her cries and shrieks were reduced to tiny sniffles as she buried her face onto Itachi's shoulder. Itachi hummed a lullaby that his mother used ages ago to put him and Sasuke to sleep as he waltzed slowly around the house in his weasel costume. Another ten minutes and Heion was fast asleep.

Slowly and carefully, Itachi put her down on his bed and put pillows on either side of her. The Uchiha gave an extremely relieved sigh as he stripped himself of the weasel costume and fumbled for his abandoned clothes. He could only imagine how the child's real parents managed to put up with her. Maybe she wasn't so jittery when the Houou wasn't yet locked into her tiny body. Itachi wondered vaguely if she would grow to be like Naruto and Gaara – the future Rokudaime with the Kyuubi and the Godaime Kazekage with the Shukaku were already legendary nins in their own right and at such a young age to boot!

Kicking the weasel costume aside and picking up the rolled-up soiled diaper, Itachi made his way to the back of the house where Sasuke kept the garbage for collection every Fridays and Tuesdays. Itachi threw the soiled diaper in a garbage bag and went back inside the house to fix himself some lunch.

As he waited for the microwave to finish reheating the casserole Sasuke had fixed, Itachi thought about the Akatsuki. He wondered where he could go the moment the organization found out that he no longer had his Sharingan and was therefore now useless to their purposes. The worst case scenario in Itachi's mind was that he may have to eventually be like Orochimaru – the Snake Sannin left the organization of his own volition, and was now in the Hot List. Itachi could very well see his own name listed down there too in the near future. And then...what next?

There was a loud _ding_ as the microwave finished. Itachi fumbled for a moment as he took out his lunch and started to eat silently in the messy kitchen. But he still had the girl, and he could keep his uselessness quiet for as long as he needed to. That would mean avoiding nearly all confrontations in the future, or else finishing off foes quickly. He could not afford to have the Akatsuki know (much less Kisame or Deidara) that he was no longer the Sharingan master. He had nowhere else to go to, really. It was a lonely road ahead.

_Lonely_...the word came as a surprise to Uchiha Itachi. An awful lump appeared in his throat for no apparent reason. Well, his life had been lonely the moment he'd activated his Sharingan. Who said gifted nins did not have grievances? Itachi rose and took the dishes to be washed. For one moment it seemed that Itachi could guess why Orochimaru had suddenly changed and clung to the fox-boy Naruto as hard as he could. The life of a criminal was surely lonely, and no one could stand it forever. The glass bowl slipped from Itachi's soapy hands and landed with an odd clunk on the stainless sink. What in the name of Hokage was he thinking _now_?

Impossible. He'd killed his heart long ago and Sasuke hated him to the utmost. _But if he still hated me as before, how come he didn't kill me off?_ Itachi thought as he picked up the bowl and rinsed it. It could be that Sasuke was only biding his time. His brother had this weird notion of fighting fairly – some rubbish principle Itachi was willing to bet his life that he'd learned from Naruto.

A sudden cry from the bedroom jerked Itachi out of his thoughts.

"I'm coming! Wait a minute -!"

He hurriedly wiped his hands dry on his shirt and went to Heion. After a minute he went to heat some water on the stove. Itachi marched back to the baby and left her in the living room with piles of Sasuke's toys. And then it was time to clean the house, but most especially his bedroom. He looked for an aerosol – air freshener – and sprayed deliberate amounts in his place. It was good that Sasuke left the cleaning tools and air freshener in easy reach.

The water boiled and Itachi took it off the stove, but he forgot to close it properly. He even left the aerosol can in dangerous proximity. He gave Heion some of the instant strawberry flavored baby food Sasuke bought for her. And then Itachi went for a wide straw hat, put it on his head and took Heion for a stroll down Konoha's streets.

Five minutes after their departure, a big explosion of fire shook the Uchiha compound.


	8. The Peace of Fox and Weasel

_Possible pointless chapter ahead. XD_

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**The Link**

**Chapter VII: The Peace of Fox and Weasel**

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Naruto had been busy cleaning his apartment room when a minor earthquake (or was it?) shook Konoha. Startled, the fox-boy looked up from sweeping the floor, blue eyes widened in confusion. Abandoning the said cleaning tools, Naruto went to his window, slid it open and poked his head out, frowning. Below the street and to the other apartments across his own, confused heads popped up, frowning or gaping openly at the thick and tall pillar of black smoke that rose somewhere from the western region of Konoha city.

"What in the name of Yondaime...?" Naruto wondered aloud as he stared openmouthed at the gigantic pillar of smoke. Some of the ninjas four floors below on the street were starting to run toward the pillar of smoke. Out of the corner of his eye Naruto saw Asuma go to the nearest phone booth and dial Konoha Rescue. Shaking his head, Naruto withdrew back into his apartment and went back to his cleaning.

He'd been gone for a month and a half; it was the second week of August now. It was good that his landlord did not forget to take out his sealed up garbage bags, though. Some of his instant ramen cups made such a stink if left alone in the trash bin for too long. Naruto flattened himself on his tatami floor and reached out with the broomstick in his right hand to clean the area under his squeaky bed.

Unconsciously, Naruto's thoughts strayed back to the mysterious purple-eyed medic that had just suddenly burst in one them that particular day at dinner. It wasn't just the medic's beauty that made Naruto think about her often, but her _lame_ reason of being with them that night. It was his sensei Orochimaru who provided a very absurd explanation, though, and Naruto would not believe a word of it no matter what. He knew his third sensei enough from Jiraiya – Orochimaru did not have eyes for any other woman except Tsunade (this fact was enough to make the fox boy shudder). So why did the Serpent suddenly said he'd picked up the woman? What was her name again...Koyuki? Kirishima Koyuki. Yes, that was her name. Or at least the name she gave.

Who was she, really? Naruto thought hard. He remembered vividly the details of that dinner. The medic was eyeing Orochimaru like a hawk as they ate their way through Jiraiya's excellent hot pot. Why was she looking at him like that? And the strange color of her eyes...was it perchance a third eye jutsu bloodline? If so, what was it called?

So many questions with so many missing answers – and all this thinking made Naruto's stomach give a distant rumble. Reluctantly, Naruto rose, one hand clutching his protesting belly. He went to his kitchen and finding nothing to eat, shrugged and decided to head out to Ichiraku's.

The walk toward the especially favored ramen house was quite a short one. Naruto was just about to round the corner and find the welcoming Ichiraku banner when Iruka bumped into him.

"Ouch! Iruka-sensei, what are you doing?"

"Naruto! I'm sorry! The Uchiha compound is on fire!"

"The _what_?"

"The Uchiha compound! Sasuke's house is burning to ashes as we speak! Excuse me -!"

Naruto gaped after Iruka as the older Jounin brushed past him. _Sasuke's house was burning_? He would have loved to go help, but his stomach was much more important than that arrogant bastard's piece of land. Shrugging, Naruto proceeded to his favorite food house.

"_Irashai!_" came Ayame-neechan's familiar greeting as Naruto entered.

Naruto flashed Ayame his usual smirk before sitting down on his favorite spot. "Miso ramen, please!"

"Hai, Naruto-kun!"

As Ayame went to prepare his order, Naruto kept himself amused by looking at the row of old sepia photographs that were displayed silently on the topmost shelf over the counter. The fox frowned slightly. He'd been a regular customer of the Ichiraku even before he became a Genin, but this was the first time he'd actually looked at those coffee-colored papers. He squinted up at them, and one photo caught his eye at once.

It was probably the oldest of all the photographs there. The paper was brown-colored like the rest, but it was so old that it looked like some of the details were already fading (if that was possible). Naruto frowned up at the photo. The background was certainly not the Ichiraku's he had grown used to – the background of the picture was way bigger, and there were ninjas wearing the old vest in the tables, eating. But the main focus of the photo was the one that came as a surprise. It was a girl (or was it?) of about fourteen or fifteen, wearing a slightly frilly apron above a netted shirt and knee-length shorts. She was bearing a tray of ramen and she was wearing wooden skates. Her long black hair was held in a neat ponytail while a Leaf head protector rested atop her forehead. Her eyebrows were drawn up, her eyes slightly wide and her mouth partly open as she stared directly at whoever was her photographer. It was a stolen shot.

"You all right?" said the Ichiraku owner's voice.

Naruto blinked in surprise and reluctantly tore his gaze away from the old photo. "Uhh, yes. I was just..." he gestured toward the picture. "When...?" he asked lamely.

The owner's face crinkled into a reminiscent smile. "Ahh, this?" he reached for the photo Naruto had been staring at. "This was the first Ichiraku, Naruto, and this shot was taken some forty-one years ago. This was my house – I lived in the southern side of the city before the wars raged. My house and the first Ichiraku had been burned in the fires, and since then we've been in this place." He gave a fond gesture to his surroundings.

"Who is she?" Naruto asked, nodding toward the raven-haired subject of the photo.

The Ichiraku owner chuckled and pushed the framed photograph toward Naruto. "Why, I would have thought you knew _him_ best."

"Him?" Naruto repeated as he took the photo, surprised. "This one's a _guy_?"

The older man nodded. "Oh yes, very much so. Though I must say you aren't the first to mistake him for a woman. Look at him very hard. Doesn't he look familiar?"

Naruto stared. Familiar? How was this...then his blue eyes widened as he saw the unmistakable shading of what appeared as tattoos around the boy's eyes.

"EHH!" Naruto gasped. "This is..._Orochimaru-sensei_?"

The owner laughed. "Oh yes. That was the fourteen-year-old Jounin Orochimaru when he had been busy working for me one summer afternoon, just a week after the Jounin exams. You see his skates? Your mentor was creative, I must say. The first Ichiraku house was quite big, and to save himself much valued time as he served food to the customers, he introduced those wooden skates. He was quite popular, I might add. Too many of the older men often grabbed him from behind."

A disbelieving chortle escaped Naruto's lips as he stared back at his fourteen-year-old mentor. "No way! He was a _waiter_, then?"

There was an approving nod from the Ichiraku owner. "Oh yes. He was a very dependable young lad. When he wasn't serving orders you could find him washing dishes inside the main kitchen, you know. Sometimes when we had our hands full he even substituted as a fry cook." And then a sad smile appeared on the old man's face. "I was really sad when he resigned. As I told you before – the older men were way _too fond_ of him with that apron."

Naruto shook his head in amazement. And then Ayame arrived with his order, and there was a cheerful "Itadakimasu!" as he dug in.

* * *

Heion was cooing in Itachi's arms as they walked carefully down the southern alleys of Konoha. The Uchiha had his 'daughter' securely in his arms while he kept his head tilted down at a specific angle so that the brim of his wide straw hat covered most of his face discreetly. The pair arrived on one of Konoha's playgrounds, and it was here Itachi silently walked over to the sand box and deposited a giggling Heion into it. A couple of mothers who had arrived there before hand looked at him curiously.

"How many months old is she?" asked one of the mothers, one with red curls framing her rosy face.

Itachi gave a start and lifted his gaze only slightly. "Six months."

"She has nice eyes," the woman continued, and her companion nodded. "From her mother, I suppose?"

Itachi was at a loss for a few seconds. "Yes." He answered finally.

Another voice spoke. "What's her name?"

"...Heion."

"How cute! It suits her!"

"..."

There was a shriek from the girl, and Itachi instinctively fumbled for her, grabbing her from behind. She gave a wail of protest.

"Ahh, it's best if you let her play." One of the women said. "I bet it's your first child?" she laughed and her companion did as Itachi went red. "Don't worry, we'll watch over her for you too. We're always happy to teach less experienced parents, aren't we, Sumiko?" her companion answered yes, and Itachi reddened some more.

Unsure of what to do, Itachi let go of Heion's dress, and the baby crawled away to gambol in the sand along with the other two, a boy and a girl. For the nth time Itachi cursed his blindness. He had grown worry-warty since going back to Konoha with the baby, and every shriek Heion uttered made him start in fright. And the little giggles from the watching mothers only made him a more uncomfortable. He was Uchiha Itachi, the best of the Uchiha clan, master of the Sharingan – yet here he was, twitching every time a baby girl made a sound.

That was when a minor _boom_ reached Itachi's ears, and he automatically turned to the direction of the explosion. He heard the loud rustle of movement around him, coupled with babies' cries, and he himself quickly picked up Heion from the sand.

"What happened?" he asked, unable to keep the worry from his voice as Heion picked on his arm again. The feel of her toothless, warm and smooth gums against his skin was quite a welcome sensation, though. "What is it?"

"Oh my, look...a fire..." one of the voices said.

"A fire?" Itachi repeated.

"Oh yes. Do you know where that is, Sumiko?"

The other woman took a while to answer. "It's coming from the Uchihas, I think...oh dear, I wonder what happened..."

A rattling gasp escaped Itachi's throat, and he felt like he had been doused with ice-cold water. Heion cooed innocently in his arms, and he felt her small hand touch his cheek. Itachi stood there, opening and closing his mouth like a confused goldfish.

"Young man, are you all right? You look pale..."

But Itachi already turned on his heels and jumped off from the ground to the nearest roof he could reach. Heion gave an excited shout in his arms as he leapt from one building to another, following his nose toward the increasing stench of smolder and smoke. The smell got stronger, and his ears caught the shouts of people. Three streets away he stopped jumping and hid himself behind a billboard showing Tsunade giving a thumbs-up while the words 'Let's work together, Konoha!' was written above her head. Itachi strained his ears while Heion picked on his arm again.

"Good god, the main house's beyond rescue..."

"Was the Uchiha boy in such a hurry he forgot to double check things?"

"Hey! What happened here?"

"Did someone die?"

"The Uchiha boy's an examiner, isn't he?"

"What happened?"

"The fire was caused by an aerosol placed near a stove."

"What! That strong an explosion from an aerosol?"

Itachi felt his knees give way, and he sat with his back to the billboard, taking deep breaths. Heion started to cry in his arms – she was hungry again. And he'd left all of her baby things in the house, and now they were all reduced to ashes. For what seemed like hours Itachi sat there, Heion crying her heart out in his arms. And then the older Uchiha snapped back to reality. No use crying over spilled milk. He had destroyed the house, and there was nothing he could do about it now. He would have to endure Sasuke's explosion much later, but for now first priority was to find somewhere to stay...and food for his 'daughter'.

"Shh, Daddy will find you some milk, I promise." Itachi murmured as he kissed Heion's fragrant head and fumbled to wipe her tears away. He clutched her close as he prepared to jump again. "Shh, we will find you some milk. I promise." He took a great leap and landed on the Akimichi rooftop briefly. And Itachi had the perfect house in mind.

* * *

The Mizukage looked up at Kirigakure's best medic with a kind of worry etched on his face. "How long will you be gone?" he asked.

Lady Koyuki of the famed Murasaki clan bowed her head briefly. "As long as it takes to find my niece, I am afraid, Master Mizukage."

The aging Mizukage sighed. He had already been informed of what had happened to the Murasaki clan. And a powerful clan they had been, too! They had a strange bloodline limit – their eyes were purple, and these eyes worked by combining the principles of the Byakugan and Sharingan. The members of the Murasaki clan had a full 360 degrees vision with no blind spot, and their eyes could predict the attack of an opponent. It was a wonder that Orochimaru hadn't started kidnapping members of this elite but very small clan as of now. That brought to mind a very disturbing rumor from the Hidden Leaf. Uzumaki Naruto, the boy with the Kyuubi and probable Rokudaime Hokage, had been purportedly fraternizing with Orochimaru. There was no solid proof of this, but if ever one surfaced, the Mizukage would waste no time hastening to Konoha and clarifying things with their Hokage. Kirigakure had had enough of Orochimaru. And if the Hidden Leaf was forming an alliance with the Hidden Sound... the Mizukage clucked his tongue. What was the Sannin Tsunade thinking?

"The Akatsuki was responsible for the murder of your brother, Murasaki Shinobu?" the Mizukage asked gently, eyeing his best medic.

Something glinted in Koyuki's eyes. "Yes, sir. And I believe they have taken my niece because my brother's wife – Kurumi – Sealed the Houou into their only daughter. This was the reason for her death."

The Mizukage shut his eyes. He would have to take more aspirin later. "My goodness, why ever did Kurumi do it?"

"I do not know, sir." Koyuki's voice was firm and blank.

The old man sighed. "It seems there is no stopping you, Lady Koyuki. I wish you the best of luck, but also please heed my warning. The Akatsuki is not _THE_ Akatsuki for nothing."

"I know that sir, thank you for your kindness and understanding."

The medic bowed and turned on her heels to leave.

"Koyuki...where do you plan to look first?"

"The Hidden Sand, sir."

* * *

Orochimaru leaned heavily against the pine tree, his eyes shut as he tried to breathe calmly. Beads of sweat slicked the Serpent's forehead, causing some strands of his raven hair to cling to his face. The Serpent reached with one bandaged hand and touched his chest. He re-opened his golden eyes and resumed walking, unaware that he was staggering.

Damn, he didn't expect it to be this bad. He was sure he did not forget a single glitch when he'd been perfecting his Fuushin Tensei. Releasing the said jutsu would allow age to touch him again, and apart from that he'd grow slower too, but this..._could_ he have forgotten one important point somewhere? No, that was impossible. He prided on his memory.

"Stupid...jutsu..." Orochimaru said hoarsely as he hammered his chest. "Tsk..."

Jiraiya had noticed something, and like Naruto, tried to ask. Orochimaru told Jiraiya the truth of what he'd done, though, and the perverted hermit was utterly surprised. He could remember their conversation clearly...

"_You WHAT, Orochi-kun?"_

"_I did it. I released Fuushin Tensei, Jiraiya. The body I am using is my real body."_

_The taller Sannin shook his head in disbelief. "Naruto?"_

_Orochimaru smiled. "Yes."_

"_That boy's changed you beyond my wildest dreams, Orochi-kun."_

"_I know."_

"_So what happens to you now?"_

"_...I will grow old."_

"_And die?"_

"_Yes, and die. But I don't plan to die early. That boy has a promise to keep." He smiled again._

_Jiraiya blinked. "What promise?"_

"_He promised me that I will be able to walk through Konoha again as a free nin."_

_This statement was followed by rising of bushy eyebrows._

"_Why didn't you tell Naruto this? You are aware that the kid is worrying his ass out for you."_

_Orochimaru waved a hand. "He will understand once my hair grows white."_

_Jiraiya laughed. "Orochi-kun, I can't imagine you with white hair and using a walking stick."_

...but the pain didn't seem to want to go away. Orochimaru fished in his pockets and drew out a flask of sake. He took a deep draught of the wine. Somehow the pain lessened a bit. Should he have listened to that annoying medic? Now he regretted having thrown away her drugs. They could have worked better than the rubbish Kabuto had been giving him. But what was done was done.

"Blasted jutsu," Orochimaru hissed as he rounded another pine and walked toward an obscure tea house.

* * *

Itachi sniffed the air tentatively. Yes, it seemed this was the right place. He reached out blindly and was surprised that the window was wide open. You would have thought the brat knew better than this what with the knowledge that the Akatsuki had not yet given him up. Heion was sobbing quietly in Itachi's arms as they entered silently into the well-lit bedroom.

Itachi titled his head sideward to listen for any movement. There were none. It seemed that the fox-boy was out. Much better.

Gently, he laid Heion down on Naruto's vacant bed. "Ssh, wait a minute. I'll go find something."

The Uchiha went to the refrigerator and rummaged there for some time. Fortunately Naruto kept some milk. Taking the half-empty carton out of the fridge, Itachi made his way to the fox's cramped kitchen and took out a small pan from the cupboard where he could heat the milk. Meanwhile, Heion had started her racket again.

"I'm coming!" Itachi called. "Just a moment now -!"

Two minutes later and he'd had the milk in the only feeding bottle he managed to save from the Uchiha mansion. Heion finished all 8 ounces with no trouble, but after that Itachi managed to lull her to sleep without further problems. Besides, Itachi was tired himself, and within five minutes he was also dozing off, Heion's head pillowed lovingly on his left arm.

Exactly five seconds after Itachi sank into deep sleep, the door opened to admit Naruto inside his house. At the sight of the notorious Uchiha and his daughter on the fox's bed, Naruto gave an ear-splitting yell.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHH! _WHAT IN THE NAME OF YONDAIME ARE YOU DOING IN MY HOUSE?_"

* * *

Sasuke waited in the same spot Anko had stood years ago. Although the Uchiha appeared to be at his ease, his senses were alert and his Sharingan ready to be used. Sooner or later the first team would reach him. He hoped they'd arrive quicker – he was growing hungry. At the sound of a movement, Sasuke opened his red eyes and looked expectantly. Was it his team?

His shoulders fell a little when he realized it was Kakashi. But the look on Kakashi's face made him stand up straighter.

"Kakashi-sensei! What happened? You look like you've seen a ghost." Sasuke said.

Kakashi looked unable to speak. He grabbed Sasuke's shoulders and shook the Uchiha.

"Kakashi-sensei, stop it!" Sasuke said. "You're scaring me! What is it? What is the matter?"

"Sasuke! Your house...it...it..."

Red eyes widened. "What happened to my house?"

"Sasuke, this morning...it exploded in flames...we couldn't save _anything_..."

Sasuke promptly fainted.

* * *

_Please review! Thanks so much!  
_


	9. Murders, Soot, and Drugs

_The Link: Snake and Fox was removed from the website database because of a stupidly lame reason. It saddens me so. If you guys want the link, try posting in my forums or emailing me. Meanwhile, thanks so much for the support._

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_

**The Link**

**Chapter VIII: Murders, Soot, and Drugs**

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* * *

**

Kisame and Deidara stood side by side silently in the Akatsuki cave, watching with seemingly impassive faces as the Leader paced in front of his members, his hands folded behind him. Kisame and Deidara learned that whenever the Leader folded his hands behind him like that, there was never good news coming.

"Status?" the Leader asked.

Nobody answered. The Leader sighed.

"So. For twice in a row, we have lost our most powerful hitmen."

_Thanks for stating the oh-so-obvious, boss._ Deidara thought inwardly. The blonde did not make the fatal mistake of saying this aloud. The Leader was not very clean when he got rid of the more troublesome members over the years.

"First it was Orochimaru. And now Uchiha Itachi."

Still nobody answered. The silence was almost chilling, and Deidara resisted the urge to nudge Sasori beside him, just so the puppeteer would make a noise. Any noise. As if reading his thoughts, the former Sand-nin made a wooden click.

"And we lost the _Houou_." The last word came as a spiteful hiss.

Deidara very nearly winced when the Leader's gaze landed on him and Kisame. This was it. They might never leave this cave alive. But the killing blow never came.

"Are you absolutely sure Itachi died?" the Leader asked quietly.

Kisame and Deidara did not even dare exchange glances. It was the former Mist nin that answered, shifting the Samehada on his shoulders before finding his guttural voice. "Nobody could survive a bleeding like that."

"Ah!" said the Leader, his voice turning acidic. "You _left_ Uchiha Itachi because he was _bleeding_, not because he was _dead_."

Kisame swallowed. Deidara could clearly see the way his adam's apple bobbed up and down.

"We were sure that..."

"Sure? Do you even know what that word means, Kisame?" the Leader hissed. "Not only did you lose me my most powerful tool, you also lost me one of the monsters. Times like these I wouldn't have wasted my time _scolding_ you, but I've no choice." He paced again, and the shadows seemed to swirl around him. Deidara knew it was a kind of genjutsu, but he never managed to ask. The Leader was very selfish when it came to his techniques. "The fishwife sealed the Houou into her daughter using the same seal used on the Kyuubi brat. She died, and her husband tackled all three of you using his bloodline limit – his purple eyes. Brilliant – combined basic principles of the Sharingan and Byakugan, wasn't it? I can see why Itachi was felled."

Deidara moved a finger, but Sasori gave a warning click beside him. The blonde stayed his tongue.

"Do you know what?" the Leader said as he stopped pacing. The shadows swirled around his head like a halo. A very grisly halo. "I really do not care whether Itachi is alive or dead. But I want you, Kisame and Deidara, to find the girl and bring her to me..._alive_. As for Itachi – if he _is_ by some chance of fate still breathing..._kill him_."

Deidara could not stop his jaw from dropping. "What?"

The Leader's gaze landed on him. "Kill him. You dumb or what?"

The blonde wanted to blurt out that the leader was making no point at all when Kisame's right foot slammed into his own. Deidara let out a pained hiss and nudged the shark-man in the ribs, making him grunt.

"Why?" Kisame said.

The Leader's eyes flashed from anger to amused. Amazing how he could switch from one emotion to the other in the blink of an eye. "Because Itachi is already useless without his Sharingan. I am sure the fight has taken its toll on him. His eyesight had been failing for a long time, even though he did keep his silence. I am not stupid, you know. I do not need blind nins in the Akatsuki."

_Blind? Itachi lost his Sharingan?_ The thought was enough to make Deidara's brain sag.

There was a condescending sigh from the Leader. "They all end up as failures. First it was Orochimaru releasing his Fushi Tensei for the Kyuubi brat. Now it's Itachi losing his eyesight. No matter how ruthless they can be in the start, they follow this weird trend of dying as fools in the end. My, my...what a shameful waste of power and talent."

It was Kisame's turn to gape. It was good that the cave was dark. Gaping was a very disgraceful action. Especially for an Akatsuki member.

"Now I want things perfectly done this time, Kisame. Deidara." The Leader went on. "Find the girl and bring her here, and kill Uchiha Itachi. And do not forget to bring back his ring. Goodness knows how the prices have hiked. We need to save up."

They had no choice. Obey or die.

"Yes, sir."

* * *

"I said what are you doing in my house!" Naruto practically shouted as he raised his right hand, Rasengan at the ready. "Answer!"

A sudden shrill cry startled Naruto, causing the Rasengan between his fingers to fluctuate before finally fading with a faint _pop_. He gaped as Itachi spared a moment to glower at him before turning to his side and picking up a..._baby_...and trying to hush it. All thoughts of anger and alarm fading, Naruto stepped closer to his bed where Itachi was sitting, rocking the baby in his arms.

The baby was pretty. She had creamy ivory skin and tufts of soft dark brown hair on her rounded head. Her eyes were startling purple, her nose slightly pinched, her lips very pink. Naruto could not help but stare at her. She bawled and bawled in Itachi's arms, tears trickling down her reddened cheeks. And then it hit Naruto. _Oh holy Yondaime! Itachi is a FATHER_!

"Your daughter?" Naruto blurted out, transferring his gaze to Itachi.

Itachi gave a curt nod. "Do you know how hard it was to put her to sleep?"

Naruto scratched his head. "I'm sorry? But hey! What the hell are you doing here? No – what are you doing in Konoha?"

Itachi rolled his eyes. He _hated_ having to explain things. "Long story."

The fact that an Akatsuki and missing nin was sitting in his bed was soon forgotten in Naruto's head. Blue eyes sparkling, he reached out his hands. "Can I carry her? Huh? Pretty please?"

Itachi opened his mouth slightly. He frowned at the direction where he hoped Naruto was sitting on the bed with him. "Uh...I guess so?" And he held out the bawling Heion toward the fox boy, and soon the child's weight left her hands.

Naruto took Heion with all the care in the world, lifting her up so she could peer down his face. Her purple eyes were very wide and drops of tears clung to her lashes as she silently looked down at the new face. She had grown used to Sasuke and Itachi, and Naruto's blue-eyed and whiskered features came as a surprise. However the baby's lips curled, and Naruto knew she didn't like him. But the fox was quick.

"No, no! Don't cry! I won't bite you! Here, look - !"

And Naruto made all sorts of funny faces for Heion. Soon the child forgot about crying her throat out and instead let out a shriek of hilarity.

"Haha, cute little angel, aren't you?" Naruto exclaimed as he rose and started throwing Heion in the air before catching her again. "You like being tossed about, don't you? Don't you? You're just like Asuma and Kurenai's Eikichi – damn bugger wants to be hurled around like a cannonball!"

Itachi gaped. _Asuma and Kurenai?_

"Ehi! Tickletickletickletickletickletickletickle!" Naruto laughed as the baby laughed with him. "Let's go higher! WOOO!" He threw Heion high enough that the girl's hair scraped his ceiling, but the baby was at the peak of hilarity.

Itachi took a moment to find his voice. "Look...Naruto..."

"Huh? What?" Naruto asked as he caught Heion squarely by the armpits and slung her carefully over his shoulder. The baby immediately slobbered down his neck.

"Listen, ah...you see I...well, I..." Itachi fumbled for words. He was not used to begging for help. "I busted the house and...and...well...we've got nowhere else...see, I was wondering if...uhm...well...ah..." he blushed and finally shut his mouth.

Naruto smirked. "You need a place to stay in? Yeah, that was kind of a very big fire, I saw it. Sasuke will definitely explode once he hears." He turned his attention back to Heion for a moment as he tried to pry her from his neck. "Well, I wouldn't mind you here for a bit...but only until you find a new apartment."

Itachi nodded hurriedly. "Yes...yes...thank you."

Naruto tilted his head sideways and eyed Itachi curiously. The man was looking at the blankets. And his eyes...Naruto frowned. There was a kind of abnormal discoloration on the vicinity of his irises and pupils, silvery enough to make him look like a Hyuuga family member.

"What'd you do with your eyes?" Naruto asked curiously as Heion managed to snatch off his head protector.

Itachi gave a small, mirthless smile. "I've become blind."

* * *

_Screw the Chuunin exams_! Sasuke shouted in his head as he dashed like a madman around Konoha's streets, earning a barrage of stupefied gapes and stares from the general population that saw him. The younger Uchiha ran like there was no tomorrow, Kakashi's words echoing hauntingly in his head.

_Sasuke, this morning...it exploded in flames...we couldn't save **anything**..._

The first strangled sob escaped Sasuke's throat as his thoughts strayed to his niece. Soon the first few drops of tears framed his Sharingan eyes, and then flowed down his cheeks entirely. He looked like a maniac as he rounded the next street, running like hell and sobbing like a little boy who got his candy stolen. An Uchiha did _not_ cry for Nidaime's sakes!

Under the moonlight Sasuke finally laid his eyes on the charred remains of what had been a whole compound of silent houses and empty shops. Sasuke had to admit that he had never felt so hopeless in his entire life except perhaps when Orochimaru told him to his face that he was nothing but a concussed idiot not even worth teaching a single jutsu. The only things that still stood were the burnt foundations of the mansion where Itachi and Heion had been left more than a week ago.

Clenching his hands into fists, Sasuke made his way to the burnt ruins, shouting. "Itachi! Heion! I'm home! I'm back! Itachi! Heion!"

Symphatetic neighbors emerged from their houses and watched him silently.

"ITACHI! HEION!"

One of the spectators, a certain ANBU named Hyuuga Neji who paused from pushing his takoyaki cart, frowned thoughtfully at the names Sasuke was recklessly howling in public.

"ITACHIIIII! HEIOOONN!"

"Poor young man, first it was his parents, now his house...I wonder who Heion is...might have been his girlfriend..." a fat housewife muttered beside Neji. "And he even named their baby after his brother..."

Neji eyed the woman askance. She was unbelievably dense. Silently, the Hyuuga let his gaze go back to Sasuke as the stricken Jounin rummaged about the remains of his home, kicking aside burnt windows and pushing aside charred drawers and closets. The explosion was so big that authorities could not determine if there were people inside the house. If there had been, they would have been reduced to atoms.

Sasuke was no longer yelling dangerous names, but was now howling like a mad animal as he dug through the charcoal and fallen timbers. It was not good if he remained like that. He would go mad. Sighing, Neji abandoned his takoyaki cart and followed Sasuke through the ruins, stepping carefully over the remains of the houses on the ground.

Sasuke looked like a mess. Soot smeared his Jounin vest and face and practically blackened his hands and arms. Neji did not waste any second, and a resounding _CRACK_ echoed as he slapped Sasuke with all his might.

Sasuke fell flat on his back and did not move. His open Sharingan eyes stared blankly up at Neji's face as the ANBU bent over to examine him.

Neji brought his face down so he and Sasuke practically touched noses. Sharingan red stared hard and deep into Byakugan silver.

"Sasuke, it is not good if you scream dangerous names like that in public. Come with me. You are a mess." Neji spoke in a hushed voice.

Neji rose, and Sasuke followed suit soon afterward. Neji led the way away from the fallen Uchiha compound as he pushed his takoyaki cart, Sasuke trailing silently behind him, his head bowed. Gradually the spectators went on with their business.

The ANBU led the way through streets that brought them nearer to the Hyuuga's apartment in turn. Still Sasuke followed like a sheep being herded to a slaughterhouse. Neji kept glancing at him every now and then.

"We'll patch you up – you're horribly dirty – and you will eat dinner with me." Neji murmured. "Hopefully I have some teriyaki left that's enough for us."

Neji's apartment was a seven-floor building only steps away from Ichiraku Ramen. After parking his takoyaki cart near the gate, Neji led the way through shadowy corridors and into his humble home. Sasuke wordlessly followed him inside and sat down on the couch, his head still bowed.

The Uchiha was still deathly silent as Neji rummaged in his kitchen. The smell of teriyaki then pervaded the air, and Neji tossed him a pair of pajamas.

"Go change," Neji said as he jerked his head toward the bathroom. Sasuke obeyed.

As Sasuke took his time in the bathroom, Neji set the table with a thoughtful frown. He wondered if it was right to force a confession out of the Uchiha using one of the newly-released interrogation drugs in his cupboard.

* * *

Yakushi Kabuto worked silently in his personal laboratory, orange light glinting off the frame of his lopsided glasses as he carefully poured a blue-colored concoction into an Erlenmeyer flask. As he worked, the notorious medic contemplated upon the state of degradation the Hidden Sound had undergone in months. Anger welled up in him as he remembered the madness Orochimaru had done. Releasing the captives and canceling his experiments. Apologizing openly and extending out peace treaties with clans such as the Fuma. Finally, the Serpent asking for his original body to be taken out of cryogenic suspension and releasing Fushi Tensei and going back to it.

For two months Kabuto watched in horror as Orochimaru proceeded with his tasks. The Serpent said that it was necessary to accomplish the said things before he returned to Konoha as a free nin. _Free nin_...Kabuto knew then that his master had gone crazy. All because of the brat named Uzumaki Naruto.

Orochimaru had grown very weak. And disgustingly soft. Kabuto felt his skin crawl when his former master told him about his other plans. Plans like forming an alliance with Konoha and extending treaties to the Sand and Mist.

Kabuto mourned for the loss of his true master, but the mourning did not last long. He had to nip the madness in the bud before it grew too strong to be killed. Fortunately he did not need to look long for an opening to stab Orochimaru in the back. Releasing the Fushi Tensei after such a long time took its toll. Orochimaru's body was still stabilizing itself. And stabilizing meant a lot of pain, really. And for pain, you needed painkillers. Custom-made painkillers.

It didn't hurt if such tablets had a small dose of poison in them. Small, unnoticeable doses that built up with every taking of the pill. And then...

Kabuto watched as the potion turned into tiny, solid balls of blue. The Hidden Sound needed a new Otokage soon. And the future Nidaime Otokage was none other but himself.

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	10. Reunion

_For people still searching for The Link: Snake and Fox, the new link can now be found in my personal forums.__Please visit my profile page to see._

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**The Link:**

**Chapter IX: Reunion**

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Orochimaru sat down on the grass, leaning heavily against the tree behind him. A pained frown was on his face, and beads of sweat bedewed his temples as he slowly unrolled the soiled bandages from his arms. It was hard replacing bandages without any help, especially if he'd have to wrap his fingers individually to prevent the flesh from sticking together.

His arms, although having regained eighty percent of their mobility, were far from being helpful. He still could not flex his fingers easily to form seals, and focusing Chakra down his wasted limbs hurt like hell. Once he thought Fushi Tensei could heal him, but only a month into his new body and his arms started dying again. Sarutobi-sensei had always been very clever with punishments.

The Serpent carelessly threw the used bandage over his shoulder and fished for a fresh roll from the medical kit by his feet. He paused as his teeth clamped down on the bandages, as his senses registered an intruder (and quite possibly a threat) coming near him. The Sannin waited in silence.

"Orochimaru-sama?"

It was a kunoichi's voice. Orochimaru spat out the wad of bandages in his mouth. "Here, Sasame-chan!"

The orange-haired Fuma girl appeared and smiled. "Orochimaru-sama, let me help you."

She took the bandages and wrapped him up. He sighed. He never could finish quickly if he was working alone, and he did not want Kabuto to help either. His gut kept telling him something was wrong, but he couldn't quite figure it out yet. Something wrong with Kabuto. It took Sasame of the Fuma clan thirty minutes to finish what was possibly a three-hour work for Orochimaru.

"Thank you, Sasame-chan."

"_Iie_, it was nothing."

They both rose and walked together for some time. The young Fuma Jounin broke the silence.

"Please say thank you to Naruto for me, Orochimaru-sama."

"Hm?"

"If it wasn't for him, we wouldn't be having Otogakure finally moving toward unity."

"..."

"Orochimaru-sama, are you going to Konoha today?"

"Yes."

"Please deliver my message to Naruto!"

"I will."

Sasame watched as the Sannin hop off the trees and disappear. She sighed before turning on her heels. Otogakure was changing for the better. She hoped Orochimaru would take Naruto here some time, so the whole clan could thank him personally. She walked back to where she came from, enjoying the shade of the trees.

* * *

Hyuuga Neji knew he was going to pay for it later, but he kept his thoughts to himself as he watched Sasuke from a respectful distance. He had accompanied the Uchiha to a nearby temple. Currently Sasuke was kneeling in front of the god's statue, hands held up above his head as he burnt incense for his deceased family members. The night Neji took him in, the ANBU seriously considered interrogation, but something inexplicable stayed his hand from pouring a drop of the drug into Sasuke's tea.

It had been a week since the fire, and Sasuke still did not utter a single word. Neji was worried for his friend's sanity. He would take the Uchiha to the Godaime later that day, just so he could be sure. Konoha could not afford to have the last Uchiha going mad from grief.

Finally Sasuke rose and quietly stepped out of the temple, eyeing Neji. The ANBU pulled down his kitty mask over his face. He had a task that day, unfortunately. But Sasuke wouldn't be alone, for he entrusted him to Hinata's company. Hinata was not yet here, but she was arriving very soon. Neji's cousin could handle Sasuke easily, what with his fragile condition these days.

"I'll see you later, Sasuke."

That was all and Neji vanished in a blur of movement. Sasuke looked up at the blue sky, wallowing in the breeze. For a moment his eyes turned into the Sharingan, and then back to black again. He gave a soft sigh.

"Sasuke!"

He turned at the sound of his own name and saw Hinata walking toward him, with her sister Hanabi. Sasuke bowed politely at the two as Hinata extended her hand to him in invitation.

"Shall we go?" she asked, smiling kindly.

Sasuke nodded and followed them meekly.

* * *

Koyuki bowed deeply in front of Sunagakure's Kazekage, Gaara. The redhead nodded graciously in turn before gesturing with his free hand.

"I am sorry I cannot help you further on this," he said.

"No, I am very much obliged, Kazekage-sama." Koyuki replied humbly. "The information for you is priceless."

A knowing glint sparked somewhere in Gaara's eyes. "I know how it feels to be devastated by the Akatsuki." He said softly as he touched his belly. Though his loss was incomparable next to Koyuki's, he knew very well the empty and painful feeling of the realization that he would never be as strong as he used to be. Kankurou and Temari were always by his side, but Koyuki was alone now. Sometimes company provided the bridge between eternal despair and salvation, as what he'd known.

Gaara rose as well, brown cloak trailing by his heels. "I will accompany you myself to the village gates."

"Thank you very much, Kazekage-sama."

Soon they left the huge mud brick compound and walked down the streets of the village. People hailed Gaara as he passed by.

"Kazekage-sama," Koyuki said after a while. "You told me about this friend of yours..."

Gaara nodded, smiling slightly. "Ahh, yes. Naruto. He is the host of the Kyuubi, and therefore a great target for the Akatsuki. Over the years the organization has tried to extract the nine-tailed fox from him, but they kept failing every time. Naruto is strong, you see...and he has an extraordinary amount of luck with him. I suggest strongly that when you go to Konoha, you contact him after you have introduced yourself properly to the Godaime Hokage, Tsunade."

Koyuki quivered visibly beside Gaara. "I cannot believe I am going to meet the last of the Legendary Three."

Another knowing smile. "You are very taken with Tsunade, it seems."

Koyuki nodded passionately. "Ever since I had been young, I had been fascinated by the stories of the Sannin. Over 1,000 missions, most of them A-class and higher, all successful. Tsunade-sama was the one who inspired me to take up the path of the Healer. There is nothing more I want in my life besides finding my niece than to meet her...and possibly shake her hand!"

Gaara nodded slightly. "I see. Well, when you do meet Naruto...be careful that you do not speak ill of Orochimaru in front of him. My friend is very sensitive regarding his third sensei."

The purple-eyed medic blinked. "I...I see."

They finally reached the village gates. Gaara took a moment to scold lazy young Genins that were frolicking outside instead of studying their lessons in the Academy.

"I wish you the best of luck, Lady Koyuki." Gaara said, bowing.

"Prosperity to your reign and to the Sand, Kazekage-sama."

The medic turned to leave.

"Lady Koyuki! Before I forget..."

"Hai?"

"When you contact Naruto, make sure he introduces you to Uchiha Sasuke." Gaara said contemplatively.

"Eh?"

Gaara blinked slowly. "Because you see, Sasuke's brother Itachi is a member of the Akatsuki. This is a lead you cannot afford to miss."

* * *

Itachi listened carefully as Naruto practiced not far from him, still doing the best he could to produce the perfect Kokuangyou no Jutsu. The fox-boy kept cursing and stomping his feet, a sign of his failure. Itachi sighed and closed his eyes slightly.

They were currently in one of Konoha's smaller and isolated parks, basking under the sunlight and breeze. Naruto had insisted that morning after they had their breakfast at Ichiraku Ramen that the baby needed a walk. Itachi tugged along without much protest, a wide straw hat over his head. Naruto had offered to carry the baby while his free hand did not let go of Itachi's wrist. The Uchiha ex-prodigy couldn't help but be amused as Naruto walked ahead, pulling him along, head turning this way and that. Did the Kyuubi brat think that just because he became blind and lost his Sharingan – he was already _defenseless_? However he made no comment – let the boy think as he would – and because he, Itachi, did not like to talk too much to begin with.

Heion was currently sitting on the bench with him, playing with a couple of Naruto's ancient plush toys. The girl gave a squeak every now and then, telling Itachi that she was doing fine. The bag of baby stuff sitting on his lap was quite heavy. Naruto was an excitable 'uncle', and packed everything including the pack of diapers, three extra bottles of milk and some spare dresses for Heion. Itachi could only shake his head.

"Kokuangyou no Jutsu!"

Itachi turned to the direction of Naruto's voice, lips parting slightly. The rush of Chakra in the air was enough to make the hairs on the Uchiha's arms rise.

"Kokuangyou no Jutsu!"

Itachi very nearly smiled. The key to genjutsu lay, like all others, concentration and Chakra control – but also on the user's intelligence. Now he could partly understand why Sasuke often called the Kyuubi brat a dumb ass.

"_Kokuangyou no Jutsu!_ Dammit, why won't you pull off!"

Heion cried, and Itachi hurried took her into his arms to feed her. Just as he was about to give the baby her milk, the child let out a croon of surprise. Itachi felt the surrounding _change_, as if someone had thrown a blanket all over the place.

"Good work," Itachi murmured.

"YAHOO! WHOOOO! FINALLY!" Naruto shouted somewhere. "Good grief, I didn't think it'd last this long..."

And then the thick feeling of the surroundings vanished, and Naruto's approaching footsteps sounded. Itachi could feel the fox standing right before him, hungrily gulping down some water.

"You know, we'd better tell Sasuke you and your baby are okay." Naruto spoke after a moment. "Did you hear that the Chuunin exams were cancelled?"

Itachi nodded slowly but did not answer.

"Look, before I leave for training, I might as well look for your stupid brother and tell him the news. And hey...don't blow up _my_ house, get it?"

"Yes." said Itachi. He had learned his lesson about leaving aerosols near stoves, all right. And as an afterthought, "Where are you going to train?"

"I don't know, it's Orochimaru-sensei who decides."

"You've been to the Sound?"

The answer was annoyed. "Not yet. I wish he'd take me."

"Orochimaru's not stupid to take his student, the probable Hokage, into enemy territory. You have to at least understand that."

There was a momentary silence before Naruto said, "You think I'll be the Rokudaime?"

"Why not?" Itachi replied. "Taught by two of the Legendary Three, you have a myriad of high level jutsus in your arsenal. And your red Chakra..." The Uchiha shrugged. "You're like Sandaime, I expect. He was taught by Shodai-sama and Nidaime-sama."

Naruto giggled. "You're just flattering me."

"Maybe."

Silence.

"Speak of the devil..." Naruto said suddenly.

"What?" said Itachi, senses hyping up. Heion sensed his tension and he felt one of her small hands touch his chest. He absent-mindedly took the small hand in his mouth, briefly suckling the fingers.

"Wait."

"Naruto! What was it? Naruto!"

But the fox-boy already broke into a dash.

* * *

Hanabi was the one doing the talking, pointing out things to Hinata and Sasuke. She was a Genin, one to take the last Chuunin exams, which had been rudely cancelled because of Sasuke fleeing the examinations on the spot after hearing the news of his house's demise from Hatake Kakashi. After some two hours of aimless silent wandering, Hanabi finally shut up as well and led the way to a slightly deserted park.

The younger Hyuuga walked a few steps ahead while Hinata and Sasuke walked side-by-side, both silent as the grave. While Hinata smiled at everything Hanabi pointed out, Sasuke kept his head bowed in the entire trip. Hanabi commented on this, but Hinata gently pointed out that Sasuke was currently very fragile and that they should not stress him out. That was Neji's strict order.

"SASUKE! SASUKE!"

The trio looked up in surprise to see Naruto running madly toward them. Hinata's face changed color from pale to beet red in a flash. Hanabi cackled into her own hand, while Sasuke only lifted his gaze and frowned curiously.

"Hi, Hinata! Hi, Hanabi!" Naruto smirked at them before grabbing Sasuke by the shoulders. "Oh, _come on_!" and proceeded to drag away the Uchiha with him.

"Ah!" Hinata exclaimed. She held out a shaking hand. "N-Naruto...d-don't!"

The fox tilted his head sideways. "Eh?"

"A-anou...N-Neji-oniisan...anou...uh..." Hinata tried to choke out the words. "S-Sasuke's...uhm...f-f-fragile..."

"Fragile?" Naruto repeated before bursting into an annoying cackle. He pointed a rude finger under Sasuke's nose. "This idiot is _fragile_?" Sasuke glared at him. Naruto had a hand around his shoulder. "I'd borrow him for a moment, don't worry, and you can resume your date later." That was all and he did drag Sasuke away.

"_DATE_!" Hanabi blurted out, eyeing her sister. "Ugh!" that was all and she stomped off, leaving Hinata alone in the sidewalk. The older Hyuuga sobbed into her hands.

Itachi looked up just as a set of footprints approached. Heion squeaked excitedly and struggled in his arms. There was a rattling gasp followed by a sob, and Heion's weight suddenly left him. Itachi stared.

"See!" came Naruto's voice. "I told you they're alive!"

Itachi recognized the sobbing one as Sasuke. He relaxed in the bench. Heion squeaked happily.

"Naruto...hold the baby for me." Came Sasuke's watery voice.

"Eh? Okay."

Itachi tensed as Sasuke approached. For a moment silence reigned again.

"This is for the house." Came Sasuke's voice. "And for nearly killing me with heart attack"

There was a loud _CRACK_ as Sasuke gave his brother a crisp, back-handed slap.


	11. Turning Points

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**The Link **

**Chapter X: Turning Points**

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Itachi was silent as he sat on the floor of Naruto's room, Heion sleeping in his arms. The ex-prodigy of the Uchiha clan was frowning contemplatively as he sat there. This morning Heion had been depressed. She did not want to play and cried easily. Naruto and Sasuke tried to amuse her, but she only cried and cried. She only shut up when Itachi took her from the crazy Jounins and rocked her gently until she fell asleep. There was something wrong with the baby. She was hotter than normal. Itachi mentioned this nervously, but Naruto said they should observe the baby's condition first before panicking.

And then somewhere around nine in the morning Heion pooped. Sasuke and Naruto were the ones who did the cleaning, but Sasuke expressed his worry that the girl's poo was wet. Naruto immediately suggested that they should make sure she had enough water or she'd dehydrate. But Heion bawled and struggled superbly whenever Sasuke tried to make her drink water. She won't drink her milk either. Naruto said that if she grew worse by tomorrow, they should take her to Sakura or Shizune. Sasuke paled at the suggestion.

"_Sakura_?" The younger Uchiha blurted out in scandalized tones. "Do you know what that chatter box will do once she finds out I do have a baby with me? It'll only be a matter of time before Tsunade will kill us all here!"

Naruto frowned at his teammate. "Sasuke, you idiot, I didn't say tell Sakura the truth. You have to lie to her."

"What? And what if she asks me who the mother is?"

"Well, give her a name of some random girl. And tell her the mother's dead."

"_WHAT?_"

Itachi heard the fox-boy sigh. "Look, I don't have time for this."

"But Naruto -!"

There was a clacking sound as Naruto slid his window open. Itachi wetted his lips briefly with a flick of his pink tongue.

"Why do you always keep your window open?" he inquired quietly.

"Because I will have a visitor -!"

There was a loud thud from Sasuke's corner, and Itachi could hear a kunai being pulled out. Itachi's body grew tense as he recognized the smell and aura in the air. That same aura radiated shocked surprise.

"_YOU_!" came Sasuke's angry voice.

"Oh hello, Sasuke-kun, nice seeing you here." came Orochimaru's strained voice. "And...well...why, hello to you as well, Itachi! Having a nice little reunion, I suppose?"

It was Naruto who answered the question. "Oh, sensei, you wouldn't believe how the two of them got here."

There was some more clanks and thud as Orochimaru went inside the cramped apartment and slid the window shut behind him. Itachi could feel tension rising quickly in the room and going so thick he could almost touch it.

"What is that kunai for, if I might ask, Sasuke-kun?" said Orochimaru, trying to be cheerful.

"I'm going to shove it up your brains -!" Sasuke hissed, but now there was a loud crack as someone's fist (probably Naruto's) smashed into Sasuke's face. "What the! Why did you hit me, Naruto?"

The fox-boy's voice brooked no nonsense. "You are staying in my house. My house, my rules. There will be no slandering my sensei here."

"Naruto, do you still consider -!"

Now, Itachi was the one who restored calm. "Enough, Sasuke." Heion, shaken out of her precarious sleep, started to cry yet again. Itachi glared blindly at his stupid brother before rocking Heion once more. Orochimaru's surprise thickened in the air, blending well into the tension.

"A...a baby!" the Serpent said in wonder.

"Don't tell me you haven't had one of your own, bastard." Sasuke said, trying to be sarcastic.

Orochimaru let the acidic comment slide. "Oh, I never had the chance and time to make a child of my own, sadly. Though I must say I have the _perfect_ person in mind who I really want to have a child with...but enough of that, that is beside the point. Goodness, I'm blabbering. Can I hold her, Itachi?"

"HELL NO!" Sasuke shouted, and there was another crack as Naruto hit him smartly at the back of the head.

Itachi frowned. The baby kept rampaging in his arms, and there was one frightening second in which she very nearly eased herself out of his grip to land hard on the floor.

"Oh, I suppose that means a no?" said Orochimaru.

Itachi blinked. "No, take her."

Sasuke made a scandalized snort. Itachi held Heion out with much effort because she kept screaming and kicking, and then her weight left his hands. Her cries got louder at the sight of a frightening and extremely pale new face.

"Dear, dear, she has a fever!" Orochimaru said calmly. It was as if the baby wasn't scratching his face at the moment. "Ooh, and quite strong too! She will make a good ninja when the day comes, I am sure. Quite possibly an ANBU at that...now, now, child..._ssh_..."

The tension in the room quivered slightly, and then faded into outright shock as Heion stopped crying and rampaging like magic. Itachi did not need to see how Sasuke was gaping at Orochimaru at the moment – somehow in his mind a very accurate image already surfaced. Heion was making soft crooning sounds as she touched Orochimaru's face.

"Kekekeke...you are a cute little angel, aren't you?" the Serpent murmured. "And what breathtaking eyes! And you smell good, too!" Heion gave a shrill laugh as Orochimaru sniffed her neck.

"H-how...how did you do that?" came Sasuke's awestruck voice.

"Yeah, how?" Naruto seconded.

Orochimaru laughed. "Kekeke...let's just say that I had my share of baby-sitting in my earlier days." There was a faint creak as the Serpent rose. "Here, take your daughter, Itachi." Itachi held out his hands and felt Heion's weight settle comfortably into him. "If I may suggest, do persist in trying to get her to drink more fluid. Have ice water ready in case her fever increases – and I am sure it will."

"What are you, a baby manual?" Sasuke piped up.

"Unlike you, I know a lot in terms of baby care. I would be happy to impart more of my knowledge on the matter, but time runs fast and Naruto and I still have a long way to go. Naruto-kun?"

"Ready, sensei!"

"Where are you going?" Sasuke pushed on.

"Somewhere in Konoha." Orochimaru answered as he opened the window again. "Well, I suppose I will see you two again!"

"Hey, don't blow up my house, okay? Ja, matane!"

"Naruto, wait-!"

Itachi let out the breath he had been holding. "Did you notice it?"

Sasuke was confused. "Huh? What?"

"Orochimaru." Itachi continued. "He feels wrong...he feels like..."

"What?"

"His aura...his aura was _empty._ Cold. He feels like someone who's going to die at any moment now."

* * *

Tsunade was smiling proudly as she surveyed the completed nomination form for the next Hokage after her. Thoughts running, the Godaime steepled her fine fingers together before resting her chin on them. In the next four or five years or so, she would step down for the next Hokage and take the place of Utatane Koharu in the Konoha council. Her late sensei's teammates were had reached the end of their days, and it was time to think of Konoha's future. Traditionally an S-ranked ninja filled for the council positions, but the only S-ranked ninjas available for Homura and Koharu's replacements were herself and Jiraiya.

She and Jiraiya had discussed these things over sake a few days ago, and it took the toad hermit at least two hours of hard thinking before finally acquiescing, saying that things would have to move on sooner or later. They also discussed a myriad of other things. Shizune was to be made Head of the Medical Team and Sakura her assistant before Tsunade stepped down, just so the Rokudaime Hokage would have lesser things to worry about. They also talked of giving Hatake Kakashi the position Morino Ibiki was going to vacate. There was also the issue of the next Ninja Academy Head, and she was still choosing between Nara Shikamaru and Uchiha Sasuke. But very probably she would let the Rokudaime handle this instead.

"So many changes, so little time..." Tsunade murmured as she lowered her gaze to the name she had written on the nomination form. Her smile inched wider. She was sure _this_ Hokage would be by far the greatest Konoha would ever see, outshining even her sensei and Jiraiya's student. Outshining even herself. She wondered vaguely what Dan and Nawaki would say were they alive. She was sure they'd approve too.

A knock on her door shook the Godaime unwillingly from her thoughts. She blinked several times before saying a rather annoyed "Enter!" She did hate it when someone inconveniently barged in on her private thinking sessions.

Sakura entered, followed by a regal, purple-eyed woman who bore the head protector of Kirigakure. Tsunade raised an eyebrow. The purple-eyed woman looked very excited about something.

"Godaime-sama," said Sakura. "Murasaki Koyuki, Head of the Medical Team of Kirigakure, wishes to speak to you." The purple-eyed woman bowed so deep her long hair touched the floor. Tsunade's other eyebrow rose.

"From the Hidden Mist?" Tsunade repeated. "You may go, Sakura."

Sakura bowed one last time before leaving, closing the door gently behind her. She gestured toward the empty chairs before her, and purple-eyed medic approached and sat down very slowly. Her eyes were very wide. Tsunade snorted. She recognized fangirls and fanboys when she saw them.

"And what may I do for you?" she said politely as she rose herself. "Can I offer you some tea?"

"Yes, please," the woman nodded hurriedly and replied in an accent tempered with authority. "I-I came here out of a suggestion by the Godaime Kazekage."

"Gaara?" Tsunade was puzzled as she pushed a filled teacup toward the woman. "And what does a Mist medic have to do with us? Did the Mizukage send you to bring me a message?"

Koyuki shook her head. "No, Hokage-sama. I came here only with my own goals and the Mizukage's permission."

"Oh?"

"Hokage-sama...I need to meet a Jounin named Uzumaki Naruto. He may have some crucial information for me that might help me find my niece. You see, my niece was taken by the Akatsuki because her late mother sealed a third tailed demon into her."

Tsunade spat out a great quantity of tea that stained the nomination paper. Crying out in panic, Tsunade leapt to her feet and tried to wiggle the paper dry. In shock, Koyuki followed suit and tried to fan the dripping paper dry with her hands.

"That does it; I will have to write it again." Tsunade said in disgust as she crumpled up the nomination paper before throwing it into a trash can under her desk. Koyuki bowed apologetically.

"Please repeat what you have said." Tsunade asked as they both sat down again.

Koyuki swallowed. "I need to speak to one Uzumaki Naruto because I have known from Kazekage-sama that he is a great target for the Akatsuki. You see, my family was destroyed by three of their members not one year ago. My brother was killed in the encounter, and his wife died by sealing a tailed demon into their only daughter. We did not see any trace of my niece, so I am sure the Akatsuki has her. I need some kind of lead on them, which is why I need to speak to the Kyuubi's host."

Tsunade's face became blank. Either the woman before her was very brave – or really very stupid. If her niece had been taken by the Akatsuki as what she said, the girl would be dead by now. Everyone knew that extraction of the demon from its host meant death for that host. And did she honestly think that a lone medic like her could take on the whole of Akatsuki? Other than that, she knew too much she could very well put Naruto in danger. If Jiraiya were here, he would have sent this young lady back to her village with a sound kick in her ass. _If he manages to take off his eyes from her breasts first, though._ Tsunade thought sourly.

"Give me a moment." Tsunade said as she took out her planner from her desk. She flipped it open on some several pages, tracing down each sheet with a crimson-enameled finger. After a moment she sighed. "I am sorry to disappoint you, but Naruto has left Konoha and won't be back for an undetermined period of time."

Koyuki's hands clenched so much that her knuckles went whiter than paper. "What? Where did he go?"

"He left earlier this day for a special training with Orochimaru, his _sensei_." Tsunade said dispassionately. This was one of the reasons why she did not like Naruto leaving with Orochimaru. The Akatsuki was hot on both their trails, and Orochimaru wasn't exactly useful what with his dead arms. Besides, she did not even know if the places they went to were exactly safe! Tsunade could not have her successor as Hokage dead even before she stepped down, now could she?

"Surely you must have an idea..."

Tsunade's patience cracked. She slammed her planner shut loudly and glared at the _girl_ before her. Koyuki, thankfully, had the modesty to shut her mouth and blush. For a few moments they were silent.

"If you don't have anything else to say, I suggest leaving." Tsunade said stiffly as she took out a new nomination form. "I have many things to do that I cannot afford to be ruined again."

Koyuki reddened some more. "Well, if I cannot speak with Uzumaki Naruto, may I please see Uchiha Sasuke instead?"

Tsunade eyed her sharply. "And what do you want with him?"

"Kazekage-sama has told me his brother is a member of the Akatsuki. He is a promising lead."

Not for the first time, Tsunade cursed Gaara in her head for being a blabbermouth with such inappropriate people.

* * *

Deidara surveyed Konoha silently from under his trademark straw hat. The people in the streets below moved with purpose, save for the occasional aimless wanderer.

"Why are we here again?" he asked.

Kisame shifted the Samehada before answering. "We need to check if Itachi hasn't returned here first."

The blond frowned. "You told me he and his brother hate each other. Itachi killed his clan, so why would he return to this godforsaken pig sty? It isn't like him if he ever did what you said."

"We cannot afford to have failures." Kisame answered simply.

Deidara huffed. "And if he is dead?"

"We find his body or his grave."

"Tch," said Deidara. "This is way too troublesome. More like a wild goose chase that leads to nowhere."

Kisame did not answer.

Once more Deidara shifted his blue gaze to the sprawling city of Konoha. He liked Itachi, but the Leader's orders were much more important. He may not look it, but Deidara loved life. He would always save his neck first when given the choice. And he had no choice except to obey.

And obey he would.


	12. Lightning and Thunder

_Enjoy reading, everyone!_

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* * *

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**The Link**

**Chapter XI: Lightning and Thunder**

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* * *

**

Itachi worriedly patted Heion's back as the girl pillowed her head on his shoulder. Small sobs racked her fevered, small frame, and even through the thick woolen pajamas Itachi was wearing, he could feel the nasty heat reaching out to him. Soon Heion's tears wet his clothes and reached his skin. Itachi did not take his hand away from Heion's small back.

He and Sasuke had done what Orochimaru said. Today was the third day of Heion's fever. She was grumpier, her temper worse, and her poo remained wet. She would not drink her milk nor the water. Her sleep was very light, and she woke at even the slightest twitching of a blanket or a pillow, and the tiresome routine repeated itself. Itachi wished he knew why she was like this. Sasuke had apprehensively remarked that the girl had lost much weight (Itachi could feel it too) and that she was now very thin.

The storm was busy rampaging outside, rattling and pounding on the doors and windows. Electricity had been cut off since lunch time, and the lighting all over Konoha was provided with portable lamps, flash lights and the eternal tallow candle. Only the hospital, Hokage castle and Ninja Academy had generators.

"'ske...'ske..." Heion sobbed tearfully. "'ske..."

Itachi gave her a kiss on the head. "Sasuke, come here. She wants you."

There was a clatter from the kitchen, where Sasuke was trying to prepare some dinner through the illumination of a couple of candles. Itachi sensed his brother come, and Heion's weight left his body.

"Shh, come now...everything will be okay..." Itachi heard Sasuke say.

Itachi rose from Naruto's bed and placed his hands on his narrow hips. "She can't go on like this. What was her last reading?"

"Thirty-nine degrees Celsius." Sasuke said with much worry. "If that rises up..."

"She will have a convulsion." Itachi finished. "We can't allow that."

There was a moment of anxious silence.

Itachi was afraid they would come to this. But secrets could only be concealed for a period of time, not forever. He could not let the girl die of a fever. As much as he did not want to admit it, she had become part of him now, filling in the dead void in his chest. And she had brought him and Sasuke back together. He would not let all of that slip his fingers. The Akatsuki and most importantly the Truth could be saved for later.

"What do we do?" Sasuke asked him.

Itachi gave a deep sigh. "Take her to the hospital, Sasuke. Bring her to the best medic you can find."

"But Itachi..."

"I trust that you know how to lie, brother." Itachi continued. "If the worse comes to worse, then let it happen. I will come forward and...and that is that."

Sasuke was silenced. Itachi had called him brother. He had not done that for... "And what happens to you?"

"I will wait for you here."

Silence again.

The older Uchiha ran a hand through his loose hair. "Well don't stand there dawdling!"

"Take her from me first, here -!"

Heion's lessened weight crushed gently into Itachi's arms as Sasuke moved about practically, gathering the baby's spare clothes, diaper pack, milk bottles, water and milk into a large tote bag that was salvaged from under Naruto's bed. Itachi clutched Heion close, kissing her frequently on the head as Sasuke packed things hurriedly.

"I have everything we need..."

"Make sure she does not get wet."

"I will."

"Here she is..."

"Gently now...wait..."

Heion cried. "'tachi! 'tachi!"

Itachi blindly reached with his hands and held Heion's head in them. Sasuke was dumbstruck as he saw a single tear flow down his brother's cheek.

"Now, child, you must be taken away so you can be cured...daddy will wait here for you until you and uncle Sasuke return, all right?"

He planted a long, lingering kiss on the baby's forehead. "Take her, Sasuke. Run like the wind!"

Sasuke took Heion in under the large yellow raincoat he wore. They went by the lone window in Naruto's apartment, and for a long while Itachi looked out of the window blindly after them, letting the rain slick his hair and pajamas.

* * *

Everything had turned into a nightmare the moment Orochimaru took the blue pill two days ago. He and Naruto had made their way back to Tsunade's old house in the little hamlet of Kikuyu to resume their training. Orochimaru had put aside teaching the fox Kuchiyose Rashoumon and taught him Futon Daitoppa instead. Everything had been going well. Naruto was learning the Futon jutsu quickly and easily, and they were happy being back in the place with so many memories. Until that day of the blue pill.

Naruto had wondered what the pill was for. Orochimaru then told him the truth – about him releasing Fushi Tensei and returning to his old body and the pain borne of his stabilization stage. There was nothing harmful of the pill, Orochimaru said. It was a custom-made painkiller, nothing else. But Naruto could not explain why he had wanted to knock the tiny ball out of his mentor's hands. The explanation would come much later.

By noon Orochimaru had suddenly contracted a fever that increased in reading in an alarming speed, and by nine in the evening the Serpent was struck down, his temperature reaching forty degrees. Naruto was panicking but he knew he could not ask the villagers for help. He tried the best he could – he placed a wet towel on Orochimaru's forehead and changed it frequently, trying everything to ease his nerves.

Then Orochimaru started screaming in pain.

It was horrifying, his screams, the way they echoed in the small house, bouncing off the walls. Sometimes he managed to choke out words in between his agonized shouts. Words like "Help me", "Naruto-kun" and "Water".

Then the blood arrived.

Naruto had tried to catch whatever sleep there was before he decided to do anything rash. His sensei had stopped screaming a few hours ago and was now lying in an uneasy sleep, a filled ice bag on his forehead. His temperature refused to go down no matter what Naruto did.

_**Child. Child, wake up.**_

Naruto did not know whether to be shocked or terrified with the realization that the Kyuubi was talking to him in his sleep.

_**The Serpent is dying. Wake up.**_

The Kyuubi's last statement was uncalled-for, because his first pronouncement literally made Naruto bolt up. It was also raining outside, and by the deafening sound, an all-out downpour. Naruto immediately went to his mentor's side.

Orochimaru was awake, eyes staring blankly at the ceiling. He was so still that for one wild moment Naruto thought he'd died, but then the Serpent turned his head sideways. Blood was dripping from one of his nostrils and from the corners of his lips.

It was Naruto's turn to scream.

"I've been stupid." Orochimaru said weakly, his face registering nothing except disbelief as Naruto helped him sit up. "I should have known..."

"Don't speak too much, sensei! Here, sit up, come on, you have to have some of this soup..."

"That was why I've been feeling wary..." Orochimaru went on, brushing away Naruto's proffered spoonful of broth. "I should have known, I should have known..."

"Sensei, you must at least have some fill, please -!"

There was a crash as Orochimaru knocked the bowl out of Naruto's hands.

"Naruto-kun...do you think you could...?"

"What is it, sensei? Anything!"

A fresh trickle of blood came from Orochimaru's pale lips. "Take me to Tsunade."

Naruto was unable to answer for a while. The storm was at its worse, and traveling back to Konoha at such a weather and in darkness... "I can carry you on my back, sensei! We'll go there right away!" He rose and pulled off the blankets from his mentor. "Look, come on..."

It did not take them long to have Orochimaru clinging to Naruto's back and traveling back to Konoha in the middle of the storm. The Serpent was quite a burden to have, but Naruto had no place for complaints as he tried his best to navigate through the blurry sheet of rain and thick shadows around him.

"...I don't know how long I can last, Naruto-kun. I might be asking too much, but if you could take us there with the greatest speed..."

"We _will_ arrive in Konoha before dawn, sensei! I promise you!"

The Serpent sighed, warming Naruto's neck for a moment. The rain splattered loudly on the improvised raincoat around both their bodies. "You are so warm, Naruto-kun. So warm and alive. I feel so cold. As cold as the grave..."

"Don't talk like that, sensei!" Naruto shouted as lightning flashed and thunder clapped. "You just cling to me and I'll give you some of my warmth!"

Orochimaru closed his eyes. "I pray we reach Konoha before I..."

_You will not die!_ Naruto's thoughts rang inside his head as tears started to brim his eyes. But then it might not have been his tears, but the rain. He could no longer be sure. He had long stopped feeling any sensation on his nose and lips because of the biting cold. _You will not die, sensei!_

_

* * *

_

Heion was crying loudly by the time Sasuke reached the welcoming lights of the hospital. Discarding his raincoat on the tiled floors and clutching the baby close, ignoring his dripping hair and legs, Sasuke shouted for a medical nin as he rushed to the emergency room.

Apprentice Genins and Chuunins responded at once, taking Heion from him. Sasuke shouted for Sakura or Shizune, and it did not take long before Haruno Sakura arrived, looking frightened.

"Sasuke-kun! What is it -?"

"Not me, not me, I'm fine!" Sasuke said, flustered. "The baby – please see to her -!"

Sakura, fortunately, saw the graveness of the situation and did not bother with questions. Giving quick, brisk instructions to the Genin apprentices, she immediately took Heion and laid the baby down on one of the immaculate white stretchers, her hands moving purposefully on the baby's head and neck. Sasuke watched her as he sat on a bench, a towel around his shoulders.

Sasuke let Sakura and her medics to their work as he prayed incessantly in his mind. _Please let her be all right...let her be all right..._ and then there was a slight commotion as the Genins Sakura sent to fetch ice water returned, but this time they were being headed by a woman Sasuke had never seen before, bearing a head protector of the Hidden Mist.

And then it hit Sasuke. _The woman's eyes were purple_! But even before he could react properly, there was a crash as the woman dropped the bucket she had been holding.

"MIYABI! OH, MIYABI!"

The woman _snatched_ Heion from Sakura's hands and clutched her close, kissing her over and over on the head, mouth and cheeks as tears flowed from her purple eyes. Sasuke found himself on his feet, kunai in hand.

"HEY!" he shouted. "YOU PUT DOWN MY NIECE RIGHT NOW, WHOEVER YOU ARE!"

* * *

Waiting did not suit Uchiha Itachi. The silence of Naruto's apartment was too heavy, too thick...too uncomfortable. Many times the Uchiha ex-prodigy paced around the room, listening for the rain or whatever there was to hear. The silence was too unnerving.

Moving toward the closet, Itachi took out one of Naruto's raincoats and put them over his pajamas. He would follow Heion and Sasuke to the hospital, and to hell about being spotted and caught. He wanted to know how his daughter was doing.

Opening the window, Itachi fled into the darkness and rain, hopping over the rooftops of Konoha. Gods, the storm must have been sent on purpose to be this strong. Lightning forked across the sky, and thunder boomed so loud that in spite of himself Itachi crouched down and covered his ears.

That momentary distraction was fatal, however. Itachi did not even manage to scream when the Samehada came slashing across his back, scattering drops of his blood in midair.


	13. Murasaki Miyabi's True Story

_I just LOVE cliffhangers. Mwahaha._

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**The Link**

**Chapter XII: Murasaki Miyabi's True Story**

* * *

Deidara cackled gleefully in the rain as Itachi fell forward, tried to get up, but fell flat on his face instead. Dark, red blood was quickly being washed away by the rain, to be redirected in the gutter of the building the three of them were on. Kisame took steps forward and lowered the exposed Samehada so that its tip touched the back of Itachi's neck.

"I didn't know he could be this weak," Deidara nodded toward Kisame. The blonde was busy sitting on the building's chimney, comfortably dry in spite of the storm. "I had grown used to the Itachi who kicked his enemies' asses."

Kisame did not bother replying. And then the shark-man's eyes widened.

"It's a trap -!" was all Kisame managed to shout before the Itachi on the roof exploded.

Deidara was quickly on his feet, his mouth hanging open. _Amazing! And he managed to do Bunshin Daibakuha too!_ The blonde suddenly felt a sudden rush of excitement as he looked around him, a sinister smile surfacing on his face. Behind him, Kisame was spluttering.

"Blasted!"

"You okay?" Deidara asked without bothering to look.

"Got scratched." Kisame replied.

_Right!_ Deidara jumped back just as a water bullets pummeled the spot he had been standing on. _Ahahaha! Looks like he isn't dead after all. Suiton Suigadan, wasn't it?_ "Sugoi ne, Itachi-sama!" the blonde cackled as he landed gracefully on his feet.

Meanwhile, Kisame had finished performing hand seals. "Suiton! Suikoudan!"

The billboard advertising a special set of kunais was punctured by countless powerful water jets from Kisame's attack. There was a pained grunt, and then a soaked Uchiha Itachi in his woolen pajamas finally emerged. Deidara stared. Itachi's long black hair was wildly against his face. Dark red liquid dripped from the edge of his pants. _So Kisame did get him after all,_ Deidara grinned.

Kisame put the Samehada on his shoulders as he looked at Itachi's disheveled form. "He's blind."

"Oh?" said Deidara.

"He would be using Tsukuyomi on us now if he weren't, fool." Kisame was getting annoyed.

Itachi did not speak. He shifted uncomfortably on his bare feet as blood continued to drip down his legs. His wound was not much of a problem, but the blood that was flowing out of it. It did not help that he relied on his four other senses heavily, and that the storm was such an awful distraction. He had to dispose of these two before he went to Sasuke and Heion – they could not find out that the girl was still with him. They would take her back to the Leader, extract the Houou and kill her. Itachi could not have that happen to the little girl he loved.

"Itachi-sama, how does it feel to be blind?" Deidara laughed as the mouths on his palms opened ready. "How does it feel to be surrounded by darkness?"

A pang of pain sent the Uchiha hissing. He gave a flick of his hands, and kunais slid into his palms. Deidara laughed some more. Senses tingling, Itachi jumped back just as Kisame attacked with Suiton Bakusui Shouha. The Uchiha could feel the droplets from the water hit his face. He landed on the opposite building. He raised his kunais ready.

"Really, Itachi-sama, what could a pair of kunais do?" came Deidara's mocking voice.

Itachi froze as he felt eight clay arms bury deep into his right shoulder. _Shit!_

"Katsu!" said Deidara.

There was a great cloud of fire as the Kumogata Nendo exploded.

* * *

"HEY!" Sasuke shouted. "YOU PUT DOWN MY NIECE RIGHT NOW, WHOEVER YOU ARE!"

Silence erupted in the emergency room with twenty pairs of eyes turning to Sasuke, who was now on his feet, kunai in hand and Sharingan eyes blazing. Koyuki took an automatic step backward, still clutching Heion close in spite of the baby's efforts to ease herself out of her aunt's grip. Sakura hurriedly turned to her.

"Really!" said the pink-haired kunoichi in a scandalized voice. "Put the baby down so I can tend her! And who are you to grab her like that? Sasuke put down that kunai or I will make you!" Sasuke spared a moment to glare at her but obeyed anyway. Sakura shifted her green eyes back to Koyuki.

Green healing chakra flared around Koyuki's arms, enveloping Heion completely. The baby stopped crying and looked in wonder at the green light surrounding her. Sakura looked terribly offended by this gesture; she even clenched her hands into fists. Sasuke took a step forward, glaring.

"I'm warning you, put her down -!" Sasuke hissed.

"She has a fever because she is starting to grow her teeth." Koyuki said levelly as she lovingly patted down the sparse brown hair on Heion's head. "Her mother and father would have been very excited about this." The green healing light faded, and Koyuki put Heion back down on the stretcher. The baby looked back at her in a puzzled fashion. Koyuki smiled before meeting Sasuke's red eyes with her purple ones.

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke demanded. "Her father is Itachi -!"

"Her parents were Murasaki Shinobu and Murasaki Kurumi, proud members of the Murasaki clan of Kirigakure!" Koyuki stalled Sasuke's words. "She is Murasaki Miyabi, my niece, sole heir of the Murasaki clan."

"What -?" Sasuke could not believe what he was hearing.

Koyuki ignored him. "Not one year ago my brother and his family had been attacked by the Akatsuki. Our clan had gained the trust of one of the tailed monsters, the golden-tailed Houou. The Akatsuki was after this tailed beast, as they are after the rest of the biju and their jinchuuriki. My brother confronted three of them – Hoshigaki Kisame, Deidara and Uchiha Itachi. Sadly, my brother died. His wife Kurumi, out of desperation, sealed the Houou into their daughter Miyabi. She died beside my brother.

"Fire had devoured our clan compound, and by the time I came back, they were gone. Miyabi had been taken from me. I searched for her, following any kind of information or lead the other jinchuuriki could give me. I first went to Gaara, Kazekage of the Sand. He told me to go here. And thus, I have found my niece at last."

Sasuke's knees would no longer support his weight. He slumped back down on the same bench, his Sharingan deactivating out of pure shock at the woman's words. The silence in the emergency room was blended well with tension. Sakura did not know whom to side with.

"But...but..."

Memories of the past months flitted inside Sasuke's head. He had often asked himself who Itachi had a fight with in order to lose his eyesight and possibly the Sharingan forever. He had also often asked himself who Heion's mother was. Where his brother had come from, bleeding, on that morning he saw Itachi in the house again. His head started to throb painfully from all the thoughts.

_But Heion...Heion WAS his niece! Heion WAS Itachi's daughter! Heion was...family._

A lie, everything had been a lie. Itachi had come back with a child and set to repair their broken relationship as brothers and as a family, only to have Sasuke broken heartlessly like this again. Sasuke's hands flew to his head. He had been thinking of actually forgiving his older brother! He had been thinking of starting the clan again – he and Itachi both! The pain in his chest was so raw it made him want to cry. He could not find the strength to meet Koyuki's eyes. A lie, everything was a lie. Itachi had wounded his soul again.

"Sasuke..." Sakura whispered hesitantly.

Koyuki's eyes shone with gratitude and sympathy. She knew the pain of hoping for something and then to have that something snatched rudely from one's grasp. "Your brother lied to you, Uchiha Sasuke." She said softly. "What I have told you is the truth. You can have the proofs if you want them. For one, the seal marked upon Miyabi's belly. The other is the same eye color that we share through our bloodline limit."

Sasuke looked up, silent tears flowing from his eyes. "Do you know...that I...I actually wanted...to forgive him?" he said bitterly. Sakura did not know whether to sit down beside him or to remain standing. "I...I believed him!" Sasuke cried. "I did not ask him a single thing! I let him in; I did not kill him like what I had planned to do all these years -! I _trusted_ him!" The word trust came as an agonized yell.

Koyuki, Sakura and the others in the room could not speak.

"What is the meaning of this...congregation?"

Tsunade and Shizune had entered the room. Shizune was looking politely puzzled at the people inside, whereas Tsunade's eyes were currently rounded with confusion and incredulity.

"Well?" said the Godaime Hokage, planting her fists on her hips. "Have you all lost your tongue?" She shot Koyuki a venomous look. "And you? Haven't I told you to go back to your village already?" Koyuki gave an apologetic bow and kept her gaze to the floor.

"Hey, Sasuke, what are you doing here?" Shizune piped up.

Sasuke rose without looking at anyone of them and fled back to the storm through one of the windows.

* * *

"RAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

Naruto screamed just as red chakra flared wildly around him, transforming him, turning his sunny blue eyes into angry red. Pumping more effort into his already-complaining legs, the fox jumped from tree to tree with renewed vigor, defying the storm and even his own body in the process. Exhaustion and the beginnings of a bad bout of flu were clawing at him from all sides, but Naruto ignored them all as he tried with all his might to inch nearer to Konohagakure, which had never before seemed so far for him in his entire life.

The only thing that kept Naruto going was the tiny, faint heartbeat that thumped gently along and against his own. It was the only indication that Orochimaru was still alive. _Still alive..._ Naruto shook his head at the thought. Nobody was going to die here. They would reach Konoha before dawn like what he'd promised, the old crone Tsunade was going to heal his sensei and everything would be all right.

Orochimaru shifted slightly behind him. Naruto could no longer feel his arms.

"Naruto-kun...?"

He could barely hear the Serpent's voice. "Here!"

"Where are we...?"

"We're nearing Konoha now, sensei!" Naruto hated to lie, but he had no choice. He could not tell Orochimaru that they were probably lost. The fox's sense of direction had left him completely an hour ago.

"Naruto-kun, did you know that I used to work in Ichiraku Ramen?"

_What's with the sudden question?_ Naruto thought. "Y-yes, sensei. Why?"

"Nice place, Ichiraku..." Orochimaru replied faintly. He had been having delusions for thirty minutes now. "Is it...is it still located in...in...what street was that...?"

"I don't know, sensei." Naruto replied worriedly as he turned his head this way and that. The pines held no real difference to him now. They were literally stuck in the middle of nowhere.

"Oh...never mind...but wait, Naruto-kun. Did you know that our team...you know...Jiraiya, Tsunade and I...we were once known as Team 7 too."

In another time Naruto would have been very happy to know the details of the story. "Really? That's very interesting, sensei, but I think that you should just save up your energy. Get some sleep if you can while I take us to Konoha. When you wake up your fever will be gone. Tsunade-baachan has amazing healing powers, doesn't she?"

"I...you're right...I should just rest..."

"Yes, you should, sensei."

Finally gaining some bearings on his sense of direction, Naruto turned east, jumping from tree to tree again. Somehow the torrential rain had lessened, and the clouds parted, allowing sparse moonlight to give him some visibility. Focusing on the little heartbeat from behind him, Naruto pushed on, no matter how hard it was.

"Naruto-kun, forgive me..."

"What are you talking about, sensei?"

"Naruto...promise me on your honor as the Rokudaime Hokage...that..."

"Sensei!"

"...that you will not...let...Kabuto...have the scroll..."

"What scroll, sensei? Kabuto? What's he got to do with –!" and then the realization hit Naruto so hard he almost reeled. _Oh god! It's Kabuto! He's done this to Orochimaru-sensei! That damned bastard!_

"...the scroll...all of my jutsus...don't let anyone else have it...it's yours by right...only yours, Naruto-kun...as the best...of my students..."

"What scroll, sensei? Where do I find it?"

But Orochimaru no longer answered back. Naruto felt a stab of fear, but he ruthlessly pushed it down as pine forest finally gave way to muddy grassland. Orochimaru had just fallen back to sleep, that's all. There was nothing to worry about. Orochimaru was just asleep again, and he'd wake up again later and start his confusing chatter.

"_Sarutobi-sensei!_ _Sarutobi-sensei!"_

"_Ah, Orochimaru-kun...you look like you haven't changed at all. Take my hand, child."_

"_Where are we going, Sarutobi-sensei?"_

"_To a place far better than the one you have just left. A place where you will not worry about anything at all. To a place where you will find your own peace, as I have found mine."_

"_But Sarutobi-sensei..."_

"_Yes?"_

"_Naruto-kun and I...we made a promise to each other..."_

"_Child, let the future worry about their promises. Your time is over. You deserve nothing but peace now. Come with me. It is time."_

_The child Orochimaru hesitantly re-takes the Third Hokage's proffered hand and turns briefly to the direction from which he came from. And they walk hand-in-hand, Sandaime Hokage and his best student, toward the glittering light ahead. _

"_Naruto-kun...I'm sorry I won't be able to walk down Konoha's streets with you..."_

The faint little heartbeat was gone, and Naruto did not even feel it fade away.


	14. Fox's Tears

_Watch out for the possible **The Link: Heart of Fire**, third and last of The Link series. Thanks very much!_

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* * *

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**The Link**

**Chapter XIII: Fox's Tears**

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* * *

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Naruto's sharp eyes registered the faint glittering lights of Hokage castle ahead, and his heart gave an excited leap in his chest. He had no idea how long he had been struggling to navigate and travel through the incessant rain, and pain racked him from all sides but he pushed it down. Now the sight of his home – fair, glittering Konoha – gave him renewed strength.

"We're almost there, Orochimaru-sensei!" Naruto cried. "I can see the city's lights now! Hold on!"

Orochimaru did not move nor reply.

"Sensei, sensei wake up! Look! Konoha – it's just ahead of us now! Come and see! Sensei, wake up!"

Coming to the conclusion that his mentor was too far into a deep slumber to be disturbed, Naruto pushed on, until Konoha's walls loomed over him in the darkness of the storm. Naruto stopped just before the great walls, taking great hungry gulps of air as he let his reddened eyes measure the structure. He could expect the walls to be slippery. Tightening his grip around Orochimaru, Naruto gave one big jump as he scaled the walls.

"Hyaa!"

Chakra pulsating red by his feet, Naruto ran on the walls as if they were ordinary street, and upon reaching the top, prepared to jump – until a sudden explosion from the western side of the city very nearly made him lose his balance and fall back to the lethal drop behind him.

"Whoah! Whoa- eek!"

The fox flailed his right arm wildly as he teetered dangerously over the edge, and it seemed he _was_ going to fall, if not for the gloved hand that appeared out of nowhere and pulled him back to safety. Blinking in the rain, Naruto was surprised to see the kitty mask of an ANBU greet him.

"Neji!" Naruto exclaimed. "What happened – what was that explosion -?"

"Akatsuki." Neji replied. "Sasuke and Itachi are fighting Kisame and Deidara."

Naruto could feel his jaws gaping. "W-what? Sasuke and..._Itachi_?"

Neji nodded. "We will do the explaining later. In the meantime..." the ANBU gave a gasp. "Naruto! Isn't that Orochimaru?"

"He's really sick right now, Neji!" Naruto pleaded. "Please take me to Tsunade-baachan!"

"But Naruto..." Neji swallowed. He could not break rules – no, not with his whole squad watching. "There's been an order that upon sight of Orochimaru we would kill him, I can't..."

Naruto's eyes flashed. "Kill him? Kill him when you manage to kill me, Neji! You're my friend, I value you as much as anyone, but if you stand in my way at this moment, I will not hesitate to kill you with my own hands!" the fox shouted.

An ANBU sporting a female kabuki mask appeared, but Neji raised his right hand to stall her.

"Come with us, Naruto, we will take you to Godaime-sama." Neji said.

Naruto's red eyes made way for sunny blue. "Thank you, Neji!"

It was Neji who led the way toward the Hokage castle, Naruto closely following him. ANBUs circled them in a standard escorting formation as they leapt from one roof to the other. In the meantime there was another explosion from the same area of the city, and Naruto thought he saw the distinct light of Chidori...

"What's been going on?" Naruto asked.

"Long story, I don't believe it myself." Neji replied. "Godaime-sama decided that we should leave the Uchihas to finish the battle. The civilians from that side of the city have all been successfully evacuated. Jiraiya and Kakashi are with Godaime-sama right now."

Naruto nodded. He grunted as he sought to contain Orochimaru's weight against his body. Was he just imagining it, or did the Serpent grow heavier?

Neji led him straight to the makeshift emergency room in the first floor of the Hokage castle. Like what the ANBU had reported, Tsunade, Sakura, Jiraiya and Kakashi were all there, deep in conversation as they entered. Tsunade's eyes immediately widened as she saw Naruto's bedraggled form, the fox's hair standing on this and that end as he positively dripped.

"Naruto! When did you – what happened to you?" Tsunade asked at once.

Naruto stepped back from her glowing hands, shaking his head. "Not me! It's sensei, here, he's so sick..."

And he quickly went to the nearest stretcher he could find and deposited Orochimaru onto it. The silence in the room came as a shock. Naruto eyed Jiraiya and Tsunade with something close to despair in his eyes.

"Please, please heal him!" Naruto begged. "I don't know what happened – it all started when he took this weird blue pill – he contracted a fever; I couldn't do anything to make it go down. And then he started vomiting blood and asked to be taken to you, Tsunade-baachan. Please heal my sensei!"

"Tsunade!" said Jiraiya suddenly. An uncharacteristic look of worry surfaced for the first time on the hermit's face as he stepped closer to his fallen comrade.

Tsunade took slow, hesitant steps toward Orochimaru's side. He looked bad – he was dreadfully soaked as Naruto and she wouldn't be surprised if he had a fever or something. She stared hard at his face. And then she reached with her right hand and touched his forehead.

The Hokage's reaction was not something Naruto expected. Tsunade gasped, and her left hand flew to her open mouth. And then her shoulders shook, and she started to _cry_. Jiraiya, frowning heavily, went near and placed his ear against Orochimaru's chest. The toad hermit drew back and bowed his head. Naruto could not understand a single thing.

"W-what's going on?" Naruto demanded. "Why aren't you healing him? I told you he's so sick and he asked to be taken here specially! Heal him now! Why aren't you doing anything? Hey!"

But Tsunade only cried and cried, and then she dropped to her knees and started sobbing her heart out on Orochimaru's chest. Jiraiya shook his head sadly. Kakashi, Sakura and Neji got the point even before Naruto did.

"Oh my god..." Sakura said softly. "Oh my god...oh Naruto, _I'm so sorry..._"

Neji removed his mask and bowed while Kakashi immediately positioned himself behind Naruto. Meanwhile, the fox's temper ticked off.

"What is going on here?" Naruto shouted, fear making his voice shrill. "Why aren't you all doing something?" He turned to Sakura and grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her rather violently. "You're a medic too, right! Heal him now! He's going to die if you don't do anything!"

"Naruto, you're hurting me! Let me go!" Sakura said in great distress as the first teardrops appeared around her startling green orbs.

Naruto let her go as if he had been scalded. He turned to Tsunade and Jiraiya in confusion. Tsunade had risen and was wiping her eyes.

"Hey! Heal him! He's going to die if you continue doing nothing!" Naruto shouted.

Tsunade turned her face toward him. "Naruto...I can't..._I can't heal someone who's already dead_." Beside her, Jiraiya clenched his hands into fists. "Orochimaru's gone. He's dead."

It was as if she had hit him hard. Naruto reeled, fatigue and fever finally gaining control, his knees suddenly refusing to support his weight. Kakashi instantly caught him from behind.

"He...he can't be dead!" Naruto said faintly at first, but his voice gained in magnitude as he went on, unnoticing his own tears as they rushed out of his eyes. "He isn't dead! I promised him I'd let him return to Konoha! He's not dead! YOU'RE ALL LYING! HE'S NOT DEAD! HE'S NOT DEAD!" he shouted so loud his throat started to ache. He struggled against Kakashi's nelson. "LET ME GO! HE'S NOT DEAD! HE'S NOT DEAD! LET ME GO!" Naruto kicked and struggled but Kakashi kept his firm grip.

"Naruto, stop it." Kakashi said calmly. "You won't be able to change anything now. Orochimaru is dead, and you can't bring him back."

"He's not dead!" Naruto cried as he became limp against Kakashi. "He wouldn't...he wouldn't leave me! He promised me! He won't die before I let him return to Konoha! He's not dead...he's not dead..."

Sakura knelt beside him and pulled him into a tight embrace. "You just cry, Naruto! You just cry and I'll cry with you!"

For a moment only Naruto's heartrending sobs could be heard as he cried and cried in Sakura's arms. Tsunade had returned to Orochimaru's side, silently and lovingly stroking the Serpent's wet black hair. Tsunade had to admit that she had never ever seen him look as peaceful as this. There was even a small, contented smile on his lips! He had never been so beautiful and so peaceful in life. And then her hands found his cheek, and she bent low, planting a dainty kiss on his lips.

"There is nothing to cry about, Naruto." Jiraiya spoke. "Come here and take a look."

Slowly Naruto eased himself out of Sakura's arms and approached Tsunade's side. Jiraiya's hand gripped him firmly on the left shoulder.

"We have never seen him looking as happy as that, Naruto." Jiraiya whispered. "You should not blame yourself. Orochimaru knows full well how hard you tried to bring him here. Don't you see, Naruto? You still kept your promise. You brought him back here to Konoha – to us. He would not be smiling like that if you've failed him."

Naruto could not stop weeping. "It's...it's hard to realize...that he won't talk to me ever again...I don't...I can't believe this...I promised him a lot...he was changing for the good – he was changing, I knew it! And this!"

Red chakra burst around the fox, transforming him again. Naruto was trembling with grief and rage. "It's him! He did this to Orochimaru-sensei! I'll kill him with my own hands!"

"Who did this, Naruto?" Tsunade asked in a hushed voice.

"Kabuto."

Jiraiya and Tsunade turned to him, their faces blank.

"Orochimaru-sensei told me that he released Fushi Tensei. He was on his stabilization stage, and it involved a lot of pain...and he kept drinking those weird blue pills...made by Kabuto. And then...and then..." Naruto shut his eyes as more tears came. "I arrived too late. If only I didn't lose my way in the forest...if only it didn't rain, if only I moved quickly enough..."

The red chakra dissipated and Naruto was once more racked by sobs. Tsunade had resumed stroking Orochimaru's hair – and then she noticed her grandfather's necklace beneath the sodden folds of the fallen Sannin's kimono. Gingerly she took the necklace off, pain eating her raw as she realized that it once again claimed the life of someone she held dear.

"Naruto, take this. I am sure Orochimaru would have wanted you to have it back."

Naruto looked up, surprised, but grief surfaced again on his face as he took the necklace and clutched it close. Sakura embraced him again and laid her head on his shoulder.

_Sensei...one way or another, I will avenge you. I will not stop until I have seen your justice. I will find your scroll and keep it. Rest now, sensei, I know you've been through a lot. You will always be remembered._

"He looks like he's just sleeping." Tsunade whispered before giving way to her tears once more.


	15. My Brother

_This chapter focuses on Itachi, Sasuke, Deidara and Kisame. We will be doing a little flashback in the beginning, since I went a little fast forward with the previous chapter. Enjoy!_

_

* * *

_

**The Link**

**Chapter XIV: My Brother**

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* * *

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The rain and wind slapped Sasuke in the face full force, scattering his hair and re-slicking his already soaked clothes as he hopped from one rooftop to another, angry tears streaming down from his red Sharingan eyes. His rage had activated the cursed seal Orochimaru placed upon him so long ago, the distinct marks spreading around his body once more after so many years.

Itachi was going to die. Sasuke would no longer spare him; no longer hold himself back...the older Uchiha was going to pay for such deceit played upon Sasuke. He had loved Heion as much as he loved himself, rediscovered the meaning of family with her and Itachi both. To found out that everything was yet another lie was something Sasuke could not bear.

Why was his life filled with lies? First it had been with Itachi. It all began and ended with his older brother. He had thought as a child that Itachi was the greatest child of the Uchiha clan; he had seen him as a great wall that he had no choice but to overcome. But in spite of that, Sasuke had loved his brother. Until he killed the clan. Sasuke had spent a good quantity of his life brooding over how to kill Itachi – to defeat him. He even went to Orochimaru, and suffered his second great deception. How could he forget what Orochimaru told him?

"_You see, Sasuke-kun, I changed my mind about teaching you. You are not the best, not the strongest...frankly you are just a concussed idiot not even worth teaching a single jutsu."_

Shamefaced, he went back to Konoha. And then there was Naruto becoming Orochimaru's apprentice. Naruto learning the jutsus he should have mastered by now. Naruto being able to change the Serpent's life completely. Was he jealous of Naruto's success? He was. Had always been. And then Itachi barged into his life once more. With a child that he learned to love more than himself. A child that told him to forgive his brother. And somehow, he had been ready to forgive everything...

...until the moment of the truth.

The cursed seal spread further, enveloping Sasuke's body completely as it transformed him to the beast. The transformation did not take long, and soon the marks receded to reveal Sasuke's second form. He landed silently near the flowerpots beneath Naruto's open window, and he went inside.

The apartment was empty. Sasuke looked warily around, but there was no sign of a struggle or haste. Itachi was not here. Sasuke was just about to leave the apartment and return to the hospital when an explosion tore through the storm's piercing song. Startled, Sasuke immediately went back to the torrent outside to see what it was.

It was not far from Naruto's apartment, only a few blocks away. A great red-orange cloud of flames and smoke was rising from a four-storey building, and there were ANBUs rushing to the vicinity. Civilians were frantically fleeing the spot while some of the ninjas joined the ANBUs to assess what was wrong. Sasuke's eyes widened a bit as he saw ANBUs felled with one swift attack coming from a sword so big...

"The Samehada?" Sasuke whispered, unnoticing how guttural his voice had become. "Then...hah!"

A dozen clay birds took flight and attacked the other ninjas and ANBUs that survived Kisame's attack, all exploding at the same time in a shower of blood and entrails. But beneath all the gruesome details, Sasuke distinctly saw how Kisame picked up Itachi by the neck; dangling him a good inches by the ground, ready to strangle him to death.

...Sasuke felt like his heart had been ripped out of his chest with fear.

* * *

Itachi could not move with the pain. By the sheer intensity of it he knew his right arm was a lost cause. He could not feel anything except the raw, clawing ache in his shoulder. He did not want to know if he'd lost his arm. The way it felt right now, he did not really need any answer. More explosions sounded around him. It looked like Konoha had finally noticed the racket they were making.

Somewhere he heard Kisame approach, and there was great pain as the shark-man's right hand crushed around his windpipe. And then he was being lifted...the strangulation was causing his brain to start being fuzzy, and that was not good. Breathing was suddenly like inhaling fire.

"Deidara, take care of the troublesome leeches." He heard Kisame say.

"Tch, you're no fun." came Deidara's reply. "You always do the killing!"

"Just do as I say, goddamn it!"

"Fine! Tch..."

Itachi hissed and gasped for breath, feebly using his left hand to somehow try removing Kisame's hand from his neck. It was a futile attempt, of course. The fluff increased in Itachi's head, and he gave a rattling gasp as his sightless eyes rolled up. His left hand fell limp on his side, and an evil grin spread on Kisame's pale face.

"Itachi, you were always a good partner, you know that." Kisame said. "But orders are orders, and the Leader no longer wants you alive. I'm sure you understand..."

_Hnhhhh...I...I...can't...die...like...this...Sasuke...and...Heion...oh gods...help me...I...I...can't...die...like...this..._

The hand around smooth neck tightened, and the first sign of bruises appeared.

_Sasuke..._

The fluff had grown unbelievably thick.

_Sasuke..._

His lungs felt like bursting...

_Sasuke...I'm...I'm..._

"**_YOU LET GO OF MY BROTHER_**!"

Itachi felt his body slam down on the roof once more, and it was like his ears was filled with a sudden rush of countless birds gone mad. And then, somewhere in all the noise...Kisame's pained shout and Deidara's yell of outrage. And then more explosions...

...and...

...merciful silence.

Sasuke came for him. Itachi cracked open his wet lips and tried to laugh. The way things were, he was probably going to die because of the pain from where his arm had been anyway. He laughed and laughed his throat ached raw.

"Itachi! Itachi, are you all right?" came Sasuke's voice. "Itachi – _oh my god_!"

"Haha, Sasuke...what are you doing here..." Itachi said hoarsely. "Look, Sasuke...haha...I lost my arm...I wonder where all my fingers got to?"

"Itachi, you look bad, I'll take you to the Hokage right now – she might be able to attach back your arm -!"

"Leave me, Sasuke. Leave my arm...I don't want it back..."

"Shut up, Itachi! Come here...get up..."

Itachi blinked in the darkness as Sasuke managed to get him up. His brother was delightfully warm.

"What...happened...to...Deidara...and Kisame...?" Itachi croaked. Good lord, he sounded like a toad.

"I've gotten rid of them for a moment. We have to get you somewhere safe. Come on! Move it!"

But Itachi couldn't move. Sasuke carried him altogether, and soon he felt the bounce as they leapt from one rooftop to another. But then there was this sudden rush in the air. A chakra so strong it was horrifically familiar.

"The...Kyuubi...jinchuuriki..." Itachi grunted.

"It's Naruto, all right. Come on...move it!"

...silence.

"I already know the truth, Itachi."

Itachi laughed. Was that a side effect of being too soaked in pain? "I was...planning to tell it...anyway."

"...you liar."

"Sasuke...did you ever know why I killed spared you, then?"

"Don't get me started. Or I will leave you to die!"

"Hear me out, you bastard." Itachi hissed sharply. "You know...nobody ever really cared about me. Except you. All mother and father – and the rest of the bullshit clan cared about was my progress as a ninja."

Sasuke answered with a shocked silence. Itachi nodded wearily.

"Well...I don't like talking much..." he went on. "I wanted to see what I could do and...I had grown tired...of the clan. The clan is a dunghole, Sasuke. The clan is nothing. The clan...the clan liked to think...it was all that mattered in the world.

"But you, Sasuke, you cared about me. Haha, I really must be dying to be all sentimental like this. _I spared you because I love you, Sasuke._ Think what you want, I've said my part..."

That was all and Itachi lost consciousness completely. Sasuke quietly swept his brother into his arms. Hokage castle glittered nearby, until a bird-shaped clay came hurtling out of nowhere. Sasuke barely had the chance to duck it before the bird came slamming into a restaurant's wall and exploded. Sasuke had to duck again as the Samehada came slashing for his neck.

"Look at your dear brother, Sasuke-sama." Deidara said. There was no laughter in his face now. "He's as good as dead. Why bother saving him?"

"Leave us to finish the work, and we won't harm you." Kisame added. Half of his face was coated in blood, and Sasuke hastily cast a quick look to the shark-man's torso. The black hole made his Chidori looked empty. How on earth did the swordsman-missing nin manage to escape unscathed from his attack?

Sasuke bit his lower lip so hard it bled. "I won't leave my brother. Kill me first before you lay a finger on him!"

Deidara's look got uglier. "He wants to die that badly, Kisame."

"I figured as much." The shark-man replied as he raised the Samehada ready.

Sasuke took a step backward. Itachi was first priority, but...

The Uchiha could not help but open his mouth in surprise as Deidara and Kisame grunted in perfect unrehearsed unison before blood came squirting out of their chests, where a blade of a wakizashi each protruded. The wakizashi were then pulled back, and the attack was fast – Sasuke had barely blinked before Deidara and Kisame's heads were already tumbling down the roof, their twitching beheaded bodies sliding after. Sasuke stared.

Koyuki's slit pupils rounded back to normal as the glow from her eyes dissipated. She lowered her arms, blood dripping from her wakizashi blades as she did so. Rain slicked her thoroughly, making locks of her hair stick to her face in beautiful curls.

"Y-you..." was all Sasuke managed to say.

"Put him down, quick." Koyuki said hurriedly as she resheathed her swords and knelt.

Sasuke obeyed, and watched the medic do her work. She got the severed arm from him without wincing and held it close to Itachi's shoulder. Green chakra lit her fingers as she ran them down the area of cutting, the skin mending like magic under her fingers. When the glow of the chakra disappeared, Sasuke found his voice.

"Why are you doing this?" he said.

Koyuki met his Sharingan eyes with her own purple ones. "He never killed my niece, and you both took care of her. I owe you two my life. This is the only way I can repay you."

Sasuke could not answer. Koyuki averted her gaze. "We must hurry." she said. "Tsunade-sama needs to recheck him for damages. I do not know if I managed to re-attach his arm properly."

Sasuke nodded and followed the woman to Hokage castle, Itachi in his arms. When they entered the emergency room in the first floor, the sight was something Sasuke never expected. Sakura was embracing Naruto as he cried, and Kakashi, Jiraiya and Neji stood with their heads bowed. Tsunade turned to them, tears flowing out her eyes. Sasuke lowered his gaze to the one lying on the stretcher before the Hokage.

It was Orochimaru, apparently dead.


	16. Partings

_Watch out for **The Link: Heart of Fire**! For hints regarding Orochimaru's scroll's whereabouts, I suggest reading **Of Ramen and Wooden Skates**._

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**The Link**

**Chapter XV: Partings**

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Deidara hissed in pain as he removed his hand from the spot where the blasted woman's blade went through his body. His fingers were slicked red with blood, but hopefully he could get up and make it back to the hideout alive. It was lucky he'd been able to do Kawarimi no Jutsu in the last moment – he had no wish to suffer through the Murasaki clan's bloodline limit again.

Kisame was already patching himself up. The Leader wasn't going to be happy.

"What do we do now?" Deidara sighed.

The shark-man held up a ring. "We got what we came for."

Deidara snatched the ring from Kisame's scaly fingers. "How did you manage to snatch this from Itachi-sama?"

"You blew up his arm, remember?"

"Oh...right."

"You need patching up?"

"Yeah, give me those bandages."

"Here..."

There was a moment of silence as Kisame wore his coat and Deidara wrapping his middle with bandages. And then the blonde tried to stand gingerly. His legs agreed to support his weight anyway.

"Do you think the Leader will be convinced that we did kill Itachi-sama?" Deidara asked.

Kisame gave him a disdainful smirk as he held up a pale, slender and severed finger.

"I think he would." Kisame replied. Deidara grinned back.

There were two black blurs momentarily in the air as the two left the cave they had hid themselves in after escaping from Konoha.

* * *

The funeral was simple, only a few people stood in attendance, clad in black as they took their turns offering incense before the picture of the deceased. Naruto took a moment as he held up his incense sticks and prayed for his sensei's soul. He opened his blue eyes after a moment and stared at the picture. It was Orochimaru five years before he left Konoha. He did not smile in the picture, as he was wont to do, except glared at whoever the photographer was. He wore the head protector Naruto now kept in his pocket and the old-fashioned, gray Jounin vest of earlier days. Naruto rose and turned to the people behind him.

Tsunade and Jiraiya nodded to him, as did Shizune and Sakura. Neji was also present, and even Sasuke, though the Uchiha did not bother to burn even a since incense stick. Kakashi, although clad in black, was busy reading his Icha Icha book. Ayame-chan and the owner of Ichiraku Ramen were also there. The owner was sobbing into his cap as Ayame-chan patted him consolingly on the shoulder. They were the only people who bothered to grieve for the Serpent. Naruto felt his hands clench into fists as he turned his gaze to the blue sky overhead.

He did not have the right to complain, though. Tsunade had been hard put to even secure a burial place for Orochimaru here in Konoha. And his tombstone did not even bear his name. It was too dangerous to write his name in the open, Jiraiya said. He shouldn't even be in Konoha, even though he was of the Legendary Three. The hard truth of this was a slap to Naruto. He had vowed once, to let the Serpent walk in Konoha again. It seemed impossible now that he really thought about it. A criminal would always be a criminal, Tsunade said, and the things Orochimaru had done weren't going to be forgotten for a very, very long time.

Kakashi shut his book. "So where are we going now? I have to get back to the ANBU headquarters."

"I'll come with you." Neji said hurriedly, and they left together.

Sasuke gave the blank tombstone a last look. "I have to go back to the hospital and see to Itachi. He hasn't woken...still." and he shoved his hands into his pockets.

"We'll go with you; we have to diagnose him as well." Shizune said as she gave Sakura a push. Sasuke led the way back to the hospital.

"We're going as well; we can't leave the store for too long." Ayame-chan said as she bowed. "We have to go." So saying she led her crying uncle away gently.

Naruto watched them all go in silence. And then he turned to the sword lying on the grass a few inches from Orochimaru's final resting place. Bending, Naruto picked up the Kusanagi from the ground, weighing it in his hands. He stepped back and performed a few slashes and thrusts with the sword. It was heavy and awkward, but he knew he was going to get used to it eventually. He ran his right index finger on the length of the blade. This blade was going to taste Kabuto's blood somewhere in the future, or Naruto would die trying. Already he had asked for Kakashi and Neji's help in learning the ways of the sword.

"When did Orochi-kun get that sword again?" Jiraiya asked, finally breaking the melancholy silence in the vast expanse of that long unused training field.

"A week before he took the Jounin exams." Tsunade replied.

"He killed that Snow ANBU for it, didn't he?"

"I think so..." Tsunade frowned lightly. "But then it might have been the weasel-summoning kunoichi from the Grass."

Naruto brought down the sword one last time with a lethal _whoosh_ before sheathing it. Tsunade gave Jiraiya a look, and the perverted hermit nodded. She stepped forward.

"Naruto, can you listen to what Jiraiya and I have to say?" Tsunade said gently as she had a hand on the fox's shoulder.

"Okay," Naruto said. He blinked expectantly up at them. This close Tsunade noted that his eyes were still swollen. He had cried incessantly for three days and four nights prior to Orochimaru's death. Tsunade did not let his shoulder go as they started to go on a slow walk back to the village.

"Naruto, I am sure you have known about Koharu-sama and Homura-sama's deaths." Tsunade explained. "The council positions they have left out need to be filled. Traditionally S-rank ninjas such as Jiraiya and I are needed to take the position. Jiraiya has agreed to take Homura-sama's place." Jiraiya nodded at this. "However...I...I can't take Koharu's place because I still hold the title of Hokage. So this means..."

Naruto stopped walking, and so did Tsunade and Jiraiya.

"So this means, you've got to step down soon." Naruto said in a hushed voice.

Tsunade nodded. "True. Soon. As the village council of Konoha, Naruto, Jiraiya and I are asking you to become the Rokudaime Hokage for the village."

Shocked silence accompanied with the widening of blue eyes was Naruto's reply.

Tsunade smiled. "Can you become our Hokage, Naruto?"

For a moment Naruto's knuckles went white as he gripped the Kusanagi tightly. But then his grip relaxed, and a sad smile surfaced on his face as he met Tsunade's eyes.

"I'm sorry. I refuse." Naruto said softly.

Jiraiya looked confused. Tsunade blinked slowly as if she had misheard Naruto's reply.

"W-what?" she blurted out.

Naruto sighed and looked back at Orochimaru's tomb. Then he returned his gaze to the two Sannin before him and bowed in apology.

"I'm sorry. I refuse the title of Rokudaime Hokage." He said clearly. That was all and he hefted the Kusanagi onto his shoulders and went on his way, whistling softly.

Tsunade felt like she had been hit with a Raiton technique. However she came to herself quick enough and ran to catch up to Naruto.

"Naruto! Naruto, wait! Naruto!"

Naruto stopped on his tracks and gave her a puzzled look.

"What are you doing?" Tsunade blurted out in disbelief as she grabbed the fox's shoulders. "Becoming Hokage has been your dream ever since you were a Genin! Isn't this your ultimate goal? Why this refusal? Is it because of Orochimaru's death? Naruto, Orochimaru wouldn't have wanted you to refuse the title of Hokage for such a trivial matter -!"

"What has gotten into you?" Jiraiya frowned as he caught up with them.

Naruto gave her another sad smile. "I can't become Hokage yet, Tsunade-baachan. So I ask you to hold your office a little longer. There is something I need to do first."

He gently pried off her hands from his shoulder and resumed walking.

"Naruto! Naruto, Orochimaru wouldn't want you to become a heartless murderer for his sake!" Jiraiya called.

There was a shout of laughter from Naruto. "I won't become a murderer, don't worry!"

"Where are you going!" Tsunade shouted after him. "Naruto! Hey – NARUTO!"

But Naruto only waved at them without bothering to look before disappearing in a blur of movement.

* * *

It was warm, that much Itachi knew. He had never felt this delightfully warm for a very long time in his life. Slowly, Itachi opened his eyes. He sighed as the familiar darkness of being blind greeted him. So much for hoping that his eyesight would return. He was surprised as he felt his right arm back into place. Turning his head, he decided to try a few of his fingers...until he realized that his little finger was gone.

"Unh..." he said in surprise. It felt weird to have one finger missing.

"You're awake! Thank goodness..." said an unfamiliar voice. It belonged to a woman.

"Who's that...?" Itachi asked as he tried to lift his head a few inches from the pillow. However, a familiar high-pitched squeak reached his ears.

"Eiyi! 'tachi! 'tachi!"

Heion's voice made him bolt upright from the bed. Blindly Itachi extended his arms. "Heion! Where is she? Can I touch her? Please, I beg you!"

He felt her gentle weight settle somewhere by his feet, and she crawled up to him. Crying in relief, Itachi instinctively picked her up and hugged her tight, kissing her again and again. He felt her warm slobber slick his cheek as she tried to bite his nose. The woman's voice gave a hearty laugh somewhere in the room.

"Do be careful, she is starting to grow her teeth, and they are quite sharp."

Itachi nodded as he took in Heion's wonderful baby scent, sniffing her neck and ears all the while raining her with kisses. She was alive, she was safe. Deidara and Kisame did not kill her nor take her away, o let all the gods be praised!

"Coo...'tachi...coo..." Heion giggled as she had her little arms around his neck and laid her head on his shoulder.

"Who are you?" Itachi asked as he patted the baby's back.

"I am Murasaki Koyuki, Head Medic of Kirigakure." the voice replied. "I am Miyabi's auntie, her only surviving family. Miyabi is otherwise fondly called by you and Sasuke as Heion."

Silence.

"So you're going to take her away now?" Itachi asked softly.

"I am afraid that is how things will be." Koyuki replied after a moment. "However, I cannot express enough words of gratitude to you and your brother. You are both always welcome to see us in the Hidden Mist anytime you like."

Itachi gave a bitter smile. "You are aware I am the one who killed your brother?"

"Yes, I am aware enough." Koyuki answered.

"And you are also aware that I had been of the Akatsuki, and therefore an S-ranked criminal and missing nin?"

"...yes."

"And you are aware that I killed the Uchiha clan, sparing only my brother?"

"..!"

Itachi gave a small laugh as he kissed Heion on the cheek for the last time. "Take your niece."

"What are you planning to do, Uchiha Itachi?"

"I am..."

However, Itachi's words were cut short, to be replaced by sharp hissing as pain suddenly erupted from his eyes. Heion cried, and soon her weight left his bed.

"Are you all right?" came Koyuki's voice.

"I...I..."

The pain escalated, and then as quickly as it had come, vanished. Itachi lifted his head slowly. At a snail's pace, the darkness that surrounded him was pierced by a single beam of light. And then another...and another...

"Haah!"

Colors appeared, and then the faint outline of a woman standing before him. The blurry outline gradually sharpened, until his eyesight had fully returned. Blinking in wonder, Itachi looked around the room. They were alone, but his senses told him there were two ANBUs at his door outside.

"'tachi!"

He held out his arms for her, and they looked long and hard into each other's eyes. Heion was very beautiful. Itachi smiled at her and gave a contented sigh. He turned his gaze to Koyuki. She was beautiful too albeit in a hardened way, and her own purple eyes glinted with pain and wisdom and love.

"Your eyesight has returned." Koyuki said in wonder.

Itachi nodded. "Yes, but is not the only thing that came back."

At once the hospital room vanished, to be replaced by the twilight world of Tsukuyomi. Koyuki stood bravely on her ground. She was not affected by his illusion, just like her brother.

Itachi walked up to her. "I have no plans to be executed, Koyuki-san. So please cooperate."

Koyuki nodded and let him touch Heion. He ran his hand over her eyes, and she instantly fell asleep. Koyuki met his gaze with determination.

"What about Sasuke? He has watched over you without any sleep for three days."

Itachi gave her a small smile. "I know. I felt him beside me."

"And you are just leaving without telling him?"

"He does not need to know; he is no longer a child."

"You love him?"

"With every drop of blood in my veins that he also shares, yes, I love my brother. Now go to sleep."

Koyuki nodded and acquiesced, finally closing her eyes.

* * *

The doorknob gave way under Sasuke's hands, and he entered the room, followed by Shizune and Sakura. However, the medics' conversations were cut short. Koyuki and Heion were peacefully asleep on the bed where Itachi should have been. Eyes widening, Sasuke immediately went into the room, rummaging about. Sakura quickly informed the ANBUs outside.

"He's gone!" Shizune exclaimed in wonder. "But...but how did he -?"

Sasuke's gaze landed on the small, wooden horse carving standing on the bedside table. It stood about a foot tall, painted exquisitely in blacks and whites. Walking slowly, he went to it and picked it up. Beneath it was a small piece of paper with Itachi's neat handwriting.

_Took me long enough to finish this. _

_I hope you don't mind the lateness._

_For all your birthdays and Christmases that I missed._

_Take care of yourself, brother._

Sasuke smiled as he clutched the horse to his heart and lifted his gaze to the open window, where the curtains were still swishing under a nonexistent breeze.

"You also owe me a new house, you bastard." Sasuke whispered as his eyes sparkled.

Some twenty kilometers outside Konoha, Itachi gave a laugh as the illusionary breeze took Sasuke's message to his ears.

**The End**


End file.
